Sword of Immortal Annihilation

The State Preceptor

Prehistoric creatures are truly hard to understand!

At this moment, Chu Ran deeply realized that between him and the cultivators of ten thousand years ago lay a generational gap as wide as the Milky Way.

Seeing the tall, thin man before him, radiating goodwill and wanting to be friends, Chu Ran’s first reaction was to glance at the burly man, Wang Mang, whom he’d just beaten up not long ago.

Wang Mang stood to the side with his arms crossed, glaring at the tall, thin man and Chu Ran with displeasure. Although his face clearly said, ‘I’m very unhappy,’ he unexpectedly didn’t start shouting like before.

Moreover, the previous contempt and disdain he held for Chu Ran had also vanished.

Not just him—the other participants gathered for the Shangqing Sect’s disciple selection also shed their previous scorn for Chu Ran, replaced by caution and wariness in their eyes.

Seeing this, Chu Ran lowered his gaze slightly.

This was exactly what he wanted.

To be honest, although Wang Mang had repeatedly provoked him first,

Chu Ran wasn’t really that angry. At most, he found him a bit annoying—just a fool.

In Chu Ran’s view, the world was full of fools besides himself.

That was just how aloof and unreasonable he was.

The reason he retaliated against Wang Mang so strongly was twofold: first, to teach this brainless brute a lesson; second, to intimidate the others.

When he stood at the foot of Shangqing Sect’s mountain, looking up at this Stairway to Ascension,

The malicious, scornful, covetous, and disdainful gazes focused on him from all directions made him extremely displeased.

A lone, low-cultivation, frail-looking pretty boy—what would happen next was almost self-evident.

Trouble!

And trouble was precisely what Chu Ran hated most. Coincidentally, Wang Mang, ignorant of his limits, bumped right into him. So Chu Ran** seized the chance to ‘kill the chicken to warn the monkeys,’ letting those with ill intentions know that even with only Qi Refining third-layer cultivation, he was not to be trifled with!

Hmph! Chu Ran inwardly snorted. His cultivation was suppressed, his age and bone structure regressed, but his current body was no less formidable than a true dragon’s physique. Body refinement practitioners? All the body refinement cultivators in the world combined might not have bones as hard as his.

Right now, Chu Ran was basically a walking, human-shaped dragon.

A total cheat…

“Fellow Daoist Chu, are you still bothered by what happened earlier?” Seeing him remain silent for so long, Wu Zhen looked at him. A faint trace of helplessness appeared on his thin, pale face as he spoke.

In his heart, he cursed the troublemaker Wang Mang a thousand more times. Wu Zhen genuinely wanted to befriend Chu Ran.

They, the witch practitioners, were different from the Qi Refining practitioners of the Central Plains. They practiced witchcraft from childhood, and among witchcraft, observing ‘qi’ was fundamental.

Heaven, earth, humans, immortals, demons—all things possess ‘qi.’

Strong ‘qi’ means strong fortune. Those destined for greatness possess ‘qi’ far stronger than ordinary people.

As for Chu Ran… Wu Zhen’s eyes darkened slightly. The ‘qi’ surrounding him soared skyward, the swirling golden light of merit almost blinding his eyes.

At that moment, Wu Zhen was utterly shocked.

Had this youth saved the Primordial World in his past life!? To have such strong golden light of merit.

The ‘qi’ on him was almost like a pillar of light, shooting straight into the heavens.

So, in Wu Zhen’s eyes, Chu Ran was basically equivalent to a small, glittering golden statue and a moving beacon enveloped in holy light.

Do you know what this means?

It means this kid must have saved the entire cosmic Primordial World in his past life to have such strong fortune and merit in this life!

With fortune and merit this powerful, this youth was destined to soar to great heights, reaching the summit of the clouds.

And anyone who opposed him would basically meet their end.

Refer to Wang Mang just now for specifics…

Wu Zhen felt both shock and joy. If it was him, then he could definitely deal with those delusional madmen from the Witch Tribe!

Those old madmen, already obsessed beyond reason, wouldn’t let him go even if he fled to the Central Plains. He couldn’t escape. The only way was to let those old madmen cling to their ancestors’ bones and rot together!

Thinking this, Wu Zhen couldn’t help but feel excited, blood rushing to his head, painting two faint flushes on his pale cheeks.

He looked at Chu Ran before him, thinking, I won’t let you do it for nothing!

Wu Zhen thought of the Witch Tribe’s supreme treasure, enshrined in the Witch God Temple, worshipped and offered sacrifices to by countless clansmen. He couldn’t help but let out a soft, cold laugh.

The laughter was icy, carrying an indescribable sarcasm.

If those old madmen knew that the Witch Tribe’s supreme treasure, which they guarded their whole lives and cherished more than their own lives, ended up in the hands of a human, would they go mad?

Oh, I forgot, those old madmen are already insane.

Chu Ran, standing opposite him, saw the sarcastic smile suddenly appear on Wu Zhen’s face and lowered his gaze.

This guy…

What is he scheming?

What about me could he possibly covet? Chu Ran couldn’t help but wonder. Honestly speaking, right now, besides his face, he had nothing worth others’ attention.

Truly… such a straightforward boy.

************************************************************************************************

Above, the Golden Crow spread its wings, casting scorching sunlight upon the earth.

There was still a quarter of an hour before the Shangqing Sect’s trial began.

Chu Ran stood at the foot of the Stairway to Ascension, tall and straight, black hair falling to his waist, his elegant, handsome face expressionless. Wide Daoist robes hid his hands, his dark quju robes rustling in the wind.

Waiting was the most tedious thing. Even Chu Ran found it boring.

He just stood there, solemnly… spacing out.

Anyway, after that earlier scene, no one with any sense would dare provoke him now.

Oh…

Except for the incessantly chattering, trying-to-get-close, annoyingly talkative Zhao Sizhuo beside him.

“Brother Chu, you’re just… too, too amazing!” Zhao Sizhuo stood beside him, his face full of worship, his tone reverent. “Just like that—grab, lift…”

As he spoke, he gestured with his hands, complete with sound effects.

“And bam! That big oaf was lifted with one hand!” Zhao Sizhuo’s eyes sparkled, staring excitedly at Chu Ran before him.

As if beholding something divine…

The epitome of a brainless fan.

“…” Chu Ran.

“Hey!” An unhappy voice came from the side. “Who are you calling a big oaf?”

Hearing this, Zhao Sizhuo turned to look at Wang Mang, who stood beside Wu Zhen, glaring at him with displeasure. He curled his lip disdainfully. “You, the big oaf!”

Instantly, the brute’s face darkened. “Looking to die!”

“Hmph!”

With a cold snort from Young Master Zhao, a group of black-robed cultivators with cold expressions and murderous gazes suddenly appeared before him.

They shielded him completely, like a wall.

“…” Wang Mang.

“…” Chu Ran.

“…” Wu Zhen.

“…” The surrounding onlookers.

Damn! What background does this kid have?

Wu Zhen and Wang Mang instantly felt a wave of relief. Good thing they didn’t clash with this kid earlier. His backing must be formidable!

Thinking this, they looked up, their gazes shifting gratefully toward Chu Ran.

Their expressions were as if looking at a savior.

“…” Chu Ran.

Holy crap…

After finally playing the villain once, I actually received gratitude from the victims.

I feel my vision blurring, almost unable to see this world clearly.

Zhao Sizhuo looked triumphantly at the dumbfounded Wang Mang before him. Hmph, punk! Scared now, huh?

He shook his head slightly, about to unleash a torrent of mockery at Wang Mang, when suddenly, his peripheral vision caught sight of Chu Ran standing expressionlessly nearby.

In that instant, inspiration struck.

A brilliant idea flashed in his mind.

And so—

He ran toward Chu Ran with big strides, wearing a panicked expression, shouting as he ran, “Brother Chu! Save me!”

“Help!”

The cries were so shrill and tragic, his steps so swift, it was simply…

#Oscar-worthy, professional, straight from Hollywood.#

Young Master Zhao, with lightning speed, rushed to Chu Ran and hid behind him.

After doing this, he even hypocritically peeked out from behind Chu Ran, glaring hatefully at Wang Mang ahead, his tone resentful. “Brother Chu, that guy wants to hit me! I’m so scared! You have to save me, save me, save me!”

“…” Chu Ran.

For a moment, Chu Ran’s mind was filled with Young Master Zhao’s shrill cries of “Save me!”

Save me, save me, save me, me…

He was about to lose it!

Not just him—everyone else present was also dumbfounded, stunned!

Although Young Master Zhao’s acting was a bit exaggerated, its effect was superb…

Didn’t you see everyone was stupefied?

Especially his group of shadow guards in black robes, who had been on standby backstage, finally made an appearance once in a very flashy, attention-grabbing way…

Chu Ran couldn’t help but look at that group, curious about what these cold, ruthless shadow guards were thinking right now.

Faced with such a playful (foolish) young master, maybe they should just slap him to death!

The black-robed cultivators stood there coldly.

Their expressions remained stern, impassive, staring ahead.

They shielded the space behind them (…) solidly, unmoving, like a wall of bronze.

Although there was no one behind them—that playful young master they were supposed to protect had long since run off on his own.

And he ran damn fast.

“…” Chu Ran.

This scene was truly comical.

Chu Ran’s mouth twitched a few times as he looked at these cold, expressionless black-robed cultivators. He felt a surge of respect.

As expected of professionals. Look at that vocational**.

Zhao Sizhuo, hiding behind Chu Ran, saw that the thigh he was determined to cling to was actually looking at those dark-clad guys instead of him!

What’s so interesting about those stiff-faced fellas!

Feeling upstaged, Young Master Zhao immediately became displeased. He called out to the black-robed cultivators, “I’m fine now.”

And then—

Whoosh.

In the blink of an eye.

The black-robed cultivators who had been standing neatly in a wall formation vanished.

Seeing this, Chu Ran’s eyes darkened instantly.

These black-robed cultivators…

To train such a group of cold, ruthless, strictly disciplined, every word and action controlled by their master, almost robot-like shadow guard cultivators—whether ten thousand years later or now, there was only one place capable of this…

The Thousand Mechanisms Sect!

The place where that man—his first, though not in name but in substance, quasi-mentor, quasi-father figure—belonged.

Chu Ran had once mocked him, “Only a control-freak** like you would enjoy training such mindless doll-like puppets.”

That elegant, gentle-looking, seemingly transcendent man chuckled lightly and said, “Don’t you think it’s interesting? To have complete control over a person in the palm of your hand—their thoughts, their love and hate, their joys and sorrows, everything under your command.”

“I don’t think so,” Chu Ran said coldly. Even as a child, his exquisite, fair face was icy, his voice disdainful. “Raising a bunch of inflatable dolls!”

“Are you a p*****t?”

The man was momentarily stunned, then chuckled. Looking at him, he said curiously, “Maybe I really am…”

“So.” The man reached out and patted the elegant child who only came up to his calf, his tone teasing. “Little Chu Ran better be careful! Maybe one day I’ll turn you into an inflatable doll!”

Four-year-old Chu Ran swatted his hand away. His dark eyes stared at the shameless old man before him, his face expressionless. “Oh, what are inflatable dolls for? Are they edible?”

“I don’t know!” the man said, sounding puzzled. “Didn’t you say that, little Chu Ran?”

“Probably… edible,” the man said, looking at the fair, tender child before him with a light laugh. “Like a steamed bun, makes people want to take a bite!”

Chu Ran, expressionless, spat out, “What a p*****t!”