I’m a Trash Spirit Root? No, I’m a Five-Element Spirit Root
The Azure Cloud Sect’s induction ceremony had drawn a packed plaza of disciples who had just joined the sect.
My name is Chu Xing. I was eighteen, and I had just passed the Azure Cloud Sect’s entrance examination.
A long line snaked out in front of the Spirit Testing Stone, everyone in it waiting to learn what spirit root they carried.
“Single Fire Spirit Root! A genius!”
“Wood-Water Dual Spirit Root. Not bad.”
“Three-Element Spirit Root. Middling aptitude.”
Exclamations rippled through the crowd, one after another.
My turn came. I laid my hand on the Spirit Testing Stone.
The stone flared to life. All five lights came on at once — metal, wood, water, fire, and earth — yet every one of them was painfully dim.
The registration steward frowned. “Mixed Spirit Root.”
The plaza went quiet for a single heartbeat. Then the whispering started.
“A mixed spirit root. His life is finished.”
“They say a mixed spirit root cultivates at one tenth the speed of a single spirit root.”
“Tsk. Sharp-looking boy. Pity he’s a waste.”
In front of me, the Single Fire Spirit Root genius glanced back, his eyes swimming with condescension.
A richly dressed female disciple beside me hid her mouth behind her hand and laughed. “Good thing I’m a dual spirit root, or I’d die of shame.”
I walked down from the testing platform, my face blank.
The truth was, I knew better than anyone in that square that the stone was broken.
I could feel all five kinds of spiritual qi moving through me, smooth and easy, each one pure to the bone, and this was no mixed spirit root.
There was no point in explaining, though.
Not a soul would have believed me. They would have called me a lunatic instead.
Better to let them believe I was trash.
The senior brother in charge of assigning cave residences glanced at my identity token, his face a little awkward. “With a mixed spirit root, all that’s left is the abandoned cave residence on the back mountain, where the spiritual qi runs thinnest.”
I nodded. “Understood.”
He blinked, surprised. “You’re not angry?”
“Would it help?”
He stood there a moment, then sighed. “Fair enough. Accept your lot. Do your chores well, keep food on the table. Not a bad life.”
The cave residence on the back mountain was every bit as broken-down as promised.
Moss grew thick on the walls, the Spirit Gathering Formation had been broken for years, and the spiritual qi inside ran thinner than outdoors.
To me, it was the perfect place.
No one to disturb me. Exactly what I needed for cultivation.
Cross-legged, I began cycling my cultivation technique.
Inside me, the spiritual qi of all five elements woke at once, feeding and checking one another, endless and unbroken, a perfect loop.
No mixed spirit root could ever have felt this.
I cultivated for two hours (one shichen), then opened my eyes.
My realm had settled considerably, faster than I expected.
That testing stone really was faulty. No working stone would read a Five-Element Spirit Root as a mixed one.
It suited me, though. No one watched me now. I could cultivate in peace.
A knock sounded outside.
“Is Junior Brother Chu here?”
I opened the door. A senior brother who handled chores stood outside.
“Starting tomorrow, you’ll work the Herb Garden as a chore disciple. A monthly stipend of twenty spirit stones.”
Twenty spirit stones was the lowest wage the sect paid anyone.
The genius disciples got five hundred spirit stones just for joining the sect.
“Understood.”
He gave me a second look. “Your attitude isn’t half bad. Some people burst into tears the moment the stone reads mixed.”
I smiled. “What good would crying do?”
“Fair point.” He nodded. “Keep your head down and work. You might still land a spot as an inner sect chore disciple.”
After he left, I shut the door and went back to cultivating.
The speed at which a Five-Element Spirit Root cultivated was terrifying, all right.
One night was enough to feel real progress.
At this rate, it wouldn’t be long before I made a breakthrough to the third layer of Qi Refining.
I had to hide my strength, though.
Until I was strong enough to protect myself, no one could learn my true aptitude.
The Herb Garden sat in the most remote corner of the sect, where the lowest-grade spirit medicines were tended.
When I arrived, seven or eight chore disciples were already there.
“New?” A dark-faced senior brother looked me up and down. “Mixed spirit root?”
“Yes.”
“Ha, another waste.” He curled his lip. “Work honestly. No slacking.”
The other chore disciples watched me with something like pity.
One of the older senior brothers drifted over and spoke low. “That’s Wang Hu. Three-Element Spirit Root, and he uses it to bully the rest of us chores. Watch yourself.”
“Thanks for the warning, Senior Brother.”
The work in the garden wasn’t heavy. Watering, weeding, fertilizing.
I was given the plot in the farthest corner, planted with the lowest grade of Qi-Nourishing Grass.
That spirit medicine was nearly useless. It could only be refined into the lowest grade of Qi-Nourishing Pills.
For me, the corner was the best spot in the garden.
No one supervised me, no one looked at me twice. I could even cultivate while I worked.
A Five-Element Spirit Root could absorb the spiritual qi of all five elements at once — that was its advantage.
The wood-attribute spiritual qi in the Herb Garden was especially thick, perfect for cultivation.
I watered the Qi-Nourishing Grass and cycled my cultivation technique at the same time, and the wood-attribute spiritual qi inside me swelled fast.
“Done weeding your patch yet, Junior Brother Chu?”
Wang Hu’s voice carried from somewhere close by.
I looked up. “Not yet.”
“That slow?” Wang Hu came over and glanced at my plot. “Can’t even handle this much work, and you want to make it in the sect?”
“I’ll hurry.”
Wang Hu’s mouth twisted. “Hurry? Looks like slacking to me. A mixed spirit root is trash — can’t even work like a normal man.”
The chore disciples around us kept their heads down and said nothing.
Ignoring him, I went back to weeding.
He scowled at my silence. “I’m talking to you. Deaf?”
“I heard you.”
“Heard me and you don’t answer?” He kicked over the water bucket beside me. “If you don’t want to work, get lost. You’re an eyesore.”
I watched the water spread across the ground and said nothing.
A small-time punk like him wasn’t worth the effort.
My one mission now was to hide my strength and lie low until I was strong enough.
When I didn’t fight back, he pushed further. “A born coward — that’s what a mixed spirit root is. Can’t even fart.”
“That’s enough, Senior Brother Wang.” The older senior brother tried to reason with him.
“None of your business.” Wang Hu shot him a glare.
Footsteps sounded outside the garden.
A woman in a pale cyan gown walked in.
Everyone in the garden stopped work and bowed respectfully.
“Greetings, Senior Sister Su.”
It was Su Qingyue, an Inner Disciple. Wood-Water Dual Spirit Root, remarkable talent. Three years after joining the sect, she had already reached the eighth layer of Qi Refining.
More importantly, she was the direct disciple of the elder in charge of the Herb Garden.
Wang Hu smoothed his swagger away at once and pasted on a smile. “What brings you here, Senior Sister Su?”
Su Qingyue ignored him. Her gaze swept the garden. “How is the Qi-Nourishing Grass growing?”
“Very well, Senior Sister, don’t worry.” Wang Hu fawned.
Su Qingyue stopped at the plot I tended, crouched, and examined it closely.
After a while she rose and looked at me. “This Qi-Nourishing Grass is growing best of all. You tend it?”
I nodded. “Yes.”
“What’s your name?”
“Chu Xing.”
Su Qingyue studied me in silence. “Not bad. Keep it up.”
She turned and left.
Wang Hu’s face went black. He shot me a vicious look.
Head down, I worked on, face blank.
But I knew well enough — Wang Hu would come looking for trouble.
Not that it mattered.
If it came to blows, he might not be my match.
The sect posted a notice three days later: every newly admitted disciple was to take part in the first trial.
The trial would be held in the Mist-Shrouded Forest on the back mountain. To pass, disciples had to kill demonic beasts and harvest their beast cores.
The more cores you brought back, the richer the reward.
It was the new disciples’ first real combat, and a chance to show what they had.
The Steward-Elder read out the rules on the plaza.
“This trial runs three days. Each of you gets one Teleportation Talisman. Crush it when your life is in danger and you’ll be teleported out — but the moment you teleport, you forfeit the trial.”
“Kill a First-Rank Demonic Beast and you earn one beast core, worth ten spirit stones. Kill a Second-Rank Demonic Beast and you earn a second-rank beast core, worth one hundred spirit stones.”
“The top ten get an extra reward on top.”
Around me, the other disciples were itching to go.
The Single Fire Spirit Root genius announced loudly, “This trial, first place is mine.”
“Senior Brother Sun is mighty!”
“No one is touching Senior Brother Sun’s first place.”
A crowd swarmed him, kissing up.
I stood at the very edge of the crowd, unnoticed.
Good. That suited me fine.
The trial began, and everyone poured into the Mist-Shrouded Forest.
I walked slowly on purpose, waiting until the main body scattered before drifting in myself.
The Mist-Shrouded Forest was every bit as dangerous as promised, traces of demonic beasts everywhere.
To me, these First-Rank Demonic Beasts were nothing.
I had barely gone far when a Wind Wolf crossed my path.
It bared its fangs and lunged, blindingly fast.
I sidestepped, slapping a palm out.
Metal-attribute spiritual qi rode the strike, edged enough to cut.
The Wind Wolf dropped dead on the spot.
I dug out its beast core, pocketed it, and moved on.
Over the next day I killed another seven or eight First-Rank Demonic Beasts.
Each time I held back, never letting it look easy.
I even smeared blood and dirt on my clothes, so it looked like I’d fought tooth and nail.
On the second evening, I rested in a valley.
Then I heard fighting ahead, and a cry for help.
“Help!”
A woman’s voice.
I hesitated, then went toward it.
Deep in the valley, Su Qingyue was grappling with a Second-Rank Demonic Beast — a Tiger-Leopard.
Already hurt, her left arm bleeding, her face pale.
She was no match for the Tiger-Leopard.
“Damn it, why would I run into a Second-Rank Demonic Beast.” Su Qingyue gritted her teeth and held on.
The Tiger-Leopard was about to pounce. I shot out from the side.
“Watch out!”
My palm caught its flank and sent it flying several meters back.
It roared and rounded on me.
Su Qingyue froze. “Junior Brother Chu? What are you doing here?”
“Just passing by.” My eyes stayed on the beast. “Get back.”
“But you—”
“Go!”
Her eyes found mine. She ground her teeth and fell back.
The Tiger-Leopard came again, faster than before.
I sucked in a breath and set the spiritual qi of all five elements inside me turning at once.
I released only the fire-attribute spiritual qi, gathered it into a fireball, and hurled it at the beast.
The fireball struck, burning a scorched patch into its fur.
It went truly mad and came at me in a frenzy.
I gave ground as I fought, making a show of struggling.
After a few exchanges I found my opening and struck again, this time folding in the cutting edge of metal-attribute qi.
The Tiger-Leopard dropped dead on the spot.
I panted hard, putting on a show of being completely spent.
Su Qingyue came over, her eyes complicated. “You saved me.”
“Nothing to it.”
“But you—” She stopped herself. “You’re a mixed spirit root. How can you kill a Second-Rank Demonic Beast?”
I smiled. “Pure luck. It was already hurt.”
She clearly didn’t believe me, but she let it go.
From her storage pouch she took a bottle of medicinal pills and handed it to me. “Healing Pills. Take them.”
“Thank you, Senior Sister.”
“Take this second-rank beast core too.”
I shook my head. “I only helped. The core is your trophy.”
Something new showed in Su Qingyue’s eyes.
“You’re special, Junior Brother Chu.”
I said nothing, turned, and left the valley.
Behind me, Su Qingyue watched my back, her mind clearly racing.
The three-day trial ended, and all the disciples returned to the sect.
On the plaza, the Steward-Elder began tallying the results.
“Sun Ming. Thirty-two First-Rank Demonic Beasts and one Second-Rank Demonic Beast. First place.”
Chest out, Sun Ming stepped forward, basking in the praise.
“As expected of the Single Fire Spirit Root genius.”
“So amazing, Senior Brother Sun.”
The elder read on. “Zhao Yunfei, second. Qian Haoran, third…”
He read through every name, up to the tenth. Mine was not among them.
Whispers started spreading through the crowd.
“Where’s that mixed spirit root?”
“Probably got scared and teleported out ages ago.”
“Mixed spirit roots are lucky to be alive at all.”
The elder glanced at the list. “Chu Xing. Nine First-Rank Demonic Beasts. Thirty-seventh.”
I walked out and collected my reward of ninety spirit stones.
Sun Ming snorted. “That’s all a mixed spirit root can manage. Nine first-rank beasts, and he still has the face to show it.”
Laughter rippled around me.
I ignored them, took the spirit stones, and turned to leave.
“Wait.” Su Qingyue spoke up.
Every head turned to her.
Su Qingyue went over to the elder. “Elder, Junior Brother Chu saved me during the trial and helped me kill a Second-Rank Demonic Beast. That credit should go to him.”
The plaza erupted.
“What? He killed a Second-Rank Demonic Beast? A mixed spirit root?”
“Impossible. Did Senior Sister Su misremember?”
“It had to be Senior Sister Su who killed it. Chu Xing just helped at the side.”
Sun Ming’s lip curled. “You’re joking, right, Senior Sister Su? How is a mixed spirit root supposed to kill a Second-Rank Demonic Beast?”
Su Qingyue glanced at him. “I saw it with my own eyes. Where’s the joke?”
The elder frowned. “Su Qingyue, you’re certain?”
“Certain.” Her voice was steady. “Junior Brother Chu killed that Tiger-Leopard alone. I was wounded, watching from the side.”
The elder was silent a moment, then nodded. “In that case, Chu Xing’s trial result is revised: nine First-Rank Demonic Beasts, one Second-Rank Demonic Beast, and a ranking of… fourth.”
The plaza detonated.
“Fourth place? A mixed spirit root?”
“How is that possible!”
“Something’s definitely rigged!”
Sun Ming’s face twisted. “Elder, I refuse to accept this! On what grounds does a mixed spirit root rank fourth!”
“You dare doubt Su Qingyue’s word?” The elder’s voice went cold.
Sun Ming shut his mouth at once.
The elder looked at me. “Chu Xing, come forward.”
I walked forward.
The elder sized me up. “Show us your strength.”
I hesitated, then nodded.
Before them all, I stirred my spiritual qi and gathered it into a fireball.
The fireball was respectable, and that was all.
The elder’s brow creased. “That’s it?”
I nodded. “Yes.”
“With strength like that, killing a Second-Rank Demonic Beast would be difficult, wouldn’t it?”
“Very difficult,” I admitted. “That Tiger-Leopard was already badly wounded. I only landed the final blow.”
The laughter that followed was twice as loud.
“I knew it. He couldn’t have killed it.”
“So he just scavenged the kill.”
“A mixed spirit root is a mixed spirit root. Never amount to anything.”
A triumphant laugh burst from Sun Ming. “Elder, does a scavenged result even count?”
The elder thought it over. “The rule is that the beast must be killed. It says nothing about the beast’s condition. So Chu Xing’s result stands.”
“However,” the elder continued, “the reward for fourth place is off the table. He scavenged it, after all.”
I nodded. “Understood.”
Su Qingyue frowned, about to say something, but I stopped her with a look.
No need.
I had never cared about the reward anyway.
I took my ninety spirit stones and walked off the plaza.
The laughter followed me out.
I didn’t care in the least.
Hiding my strength was king.
Now was not the time to reveal myself.
A month after the trial, the sect posted another notice.
The new disciples’ tournament would be held three months from now.
Every disciple who had joined the sect within the past year had to take part.
It had become a sect tradition, a way to gauge how far the new disciples had come.
The best performers would be promoted into the Inner Sect and given better cultivation resources.
The new disciples on the plaza were abuzz.
“Three months. I’m going to break through to the fourth layer of Qi Refining.”
“First place is Senior Brother Sun’s for sure — he’s already at the fifth layer of Qi Refining.”
“Us Three-Element Spirit Roots? Top fifty would be a miracle.”
Wang Hu walked up to me, lip curling. “Chu Xing, you’re entering too? Don’t embarrass yourself. On that arena, a mixed spirit root is target practice.”
I ignored him and walked off.
Wang Hu shouted after me. “Do yourself a favor and forfeit. Save yourself the beating.”
Back in my cave residence, I settled into closed-door cultivation.
Three months was enough to break through to the sixth layer of Qi Refining.
But I couldn’t rise too fast.
The fourth layer was enough. Not remarkable, not weak.
For now, steadying my realm was the whole job.
Such was the cultivation speed of a Five-Element Spirit Root — terrifying, and I had to keep it throttled. I could not let my realm rise too fast.
Otherwise someone would start asking questions.
A month later, I broke through from the second layer of Qi Refining to the third.
Two months on, the fourth.
For a mixed spirit root, that pace was a miracle.
For a true genius, it was merely normal.
Not a single soul would suspect a thing.
Three months passed in a blur.
On schedule, the new disciples’ tournament opened.
The arena stood in the sect’s Martial Training Arena, ringed thick with watching disciples and elders.
The Steward-Elder announced the rules: “Duels on the arena, opponents drawn by lot. Yield and the match ends. No killing blows.”
“First place: one thousand spirit stones, promotion to the Inner Sect, and one Mystic-Rank Cultivation Technique.”
“Top ten: five hundred spirit stones each, promotion to the Inner Sect.”
“Top fifty: one hundred spirit stones each.”
Every disciple’s eyes went bright.
My first opponent was a Three-Element Spirit Root disciple of middling strength.
The moment the duel started, he threw a lightning-attribute spell at me.
Sidestepping, I slapped a palm out.
He stumbled back several steps, his face changing. “Your strength—”
I gave him no room to react and came at him again.
A few exchanges later, he yielded.
Surprise rippled through the onlookers.
“The mixed spirit root actually won?”
“No way. That disciple had a Three-Element Spirit Root.”
“He must have just been weak.”
Wang Hu laughed from the side. “One lucky win. He’s out in the next round.”
My second opponent was a Dual Spirit Root disciple at the fourth layer of Qi Refining.
That one was harder, but I still won.
Third match. Fourth match.
I cut through every opponent in front of me, five wins in a row.
The murmur in the crowd kept swelling.
“This mixed spirit root has something to him.”
“No way. How can a mixed spirit root be this strong?”
“Is it possible the Spirit Testing Stone was broken?”
Sun Ming looked on, his face cold. “Hmph. Lucky draws, that’s all. Weak opponents. Wait until he meets a real fighter.”
The sixth draw paired me with Sun Ming.
The whole field boiled over.
“It’s Senior Brother Sun against the mixed spirit root!”
“Now we get a show!”
“He’s at the sixth layer of Qi Refining. Chu Xing doesn’t stand a chance.”
Sun Ming stepped onto the arena and looked down at me. “Chu Xing, I’ll give you the chance to forfeit now. Save yourself the bruises.”
I met his gaze, calm. “The duel hasn’t started. How do you know I’ll lose?”
“Because you’re a mixed spirit root!” Contempt dripped from Sun Ming’s voice. “I’ll show you the gap between a genius and trash.”
The Steward-Elder called, “Begin!”
Sun Ming struck immediately, Fireball Technique after Fireball Technique, each one fierce.
I dodged again and again, playing it as a losing fight.
The crowd roared around us.
“Go, Senior Brother Sun!”
“Beat that mixed spirit root to a pulp!”
“Teach him his place!”
Sun Ming rode the wave, his fireballs growing stronger.
I let an opening show on purpose and took a fireball across the shoulder.
My clothes burned through. A wound opened on my skin.
Sun Ming laughed in triumph. “That’s all you had? Barely worth the name.”
He wound up for the finishing blow to end it.
That was when I struck.
One palm, carrying fire-attribute and metal-attribute spiritual qi at once.
The strike was flame and edge together, and it took him square in the chest.
Sun Ming flew backward and crashed hard against the edge of the arena.
The field went silent.
Everyone stood frozen.
“Impossible…”
“The mixed spirit root… won?”
“Sun Ming actually lost?!”
On the arena, Sun Ming struggled to get up and failed.
The Steward-Elder called it: “Chu Xing wins.”
The field broke into an uproar.
No one believed it. The mixed spirit root had beaten Sun Ming at the sixth layer of Qi Refining.
“Impossible! Absolutely impossible!”
“How does a mixed spirit root have strength like that?”
“He cheated. He has to have cheated!”
Sun Ming lay on the ground, his eyes hollow, muttering to himself. “I lost… I lost to a mixed spirit root…”
He could not accept it.
His whole life he had been the genius, the one everyone circled.
Now he had lost to the trash nobody had bothered to look at.
Below the arena, Wang Hu’s face was livid. “This is impossible. Chu Xing used some filthy trick.”
Su Qingyue stood off to the side, her eyes complicated.
She had thought him unusual from the start. Now her instinct had proven right.
An elder in a gray robe spoke up from below the arena. “Interesting. Let me look at this child.”
The words were still hanging when he appeared on the arena.
Everyone bowed at once. “Elder Qi.”
As the sect’s alchemy elder, Elder Qi carried immense standing.
He walked up to me and looked me over closely. “Brat, what’s your name?”
“Chu Xing.”
“When you joined the sect and were tested, the stone read you as a mixed spirit root?”
“Yes.”
Elder Qi went silent for a beat. “Come with me.”
He led me off the arena to a small, secluded courtyard.
In the middle of the yard sat a brand-new Spirit Testing Stone.
“Put your hand on it,” Elder Qi said.
My chest tightened, but I kept my face calm and laid my hand on the stone.
The stone lit up.
Metal, wood, water, fire, and earth — five lights flared together, every one of them blazing.
The whole courtyard washed in their glow.
Elder Qi’s breath caught. “Five… elements’ spirit root?”
I said nothing and kept my head down.
“And the purity of every element is extreme.” He was talking to himself now. “This is… a perfect Five-Element Spirit Root.”
He looked at me, his eyes shaking. “Do you understand what this means?”
“No.”
“A Five-Element Spirit Root is one in ten thousand. A perfect one is one in ten million.” Elder Qi drew a long breath. “I have never seen a finer aptitude in a disciple.”
I stayed silent.
Elder Qi thought for a while. “You were read as a mixed spirit root before. That stone must have aged badly and failed.”
“Then why didn’t you ask for a retest?”
“No one would have believed me.” My voice stayed level.
Elder Qi blinked, then smiled bitterly. “Fair point. Claiming to be a Five-Element Spirit Root? No one buys that from a mixed spirit root.”
“What do you want to do about it?”
I considered it. “I’d ask the elder to keep it secret.”
“Oh?” He looked faintly surprised. “You don’t want anyone to know your true aptitude?”
“No.”
“Why? With your aptitude, you could be one of the sect’s prized pupils.”
I looked up at him. “The tallest tree in the forest is the first to snap. I’m too weak right now. Going public would only bring trouble.”
Elder Qi considered that, then nodded. “You’re not wrong. But hiding can’t last forever.”
“I know,” I said. “Once I’m strong enough to protect myself, I’ll come forward on my own.”
Approval showed in his eyes. “Good. I’ll keep it secret for you.”
“Thank you, Elder.”
“However,” he went on, “your aptitude is remarkable, but you lack a proper technique and proper guidance. Carry on like this and you waste the gift.”
“Elder, what do you mean?”
“Become my disciple.” His voice turned serious. “I’ll teach you the cultivation technique best suited to a Five-Element Spirit Root and help you rise fast.”
I considered it and nodded. “Elder, thank you for taking me in.”
Elder Qi smiled. “Good. From today, you are my direct disciple.”
From his storage pouch he produced a secret manual. “This is Five Elements Return to Origin Art, a technique created specifically for Five-Element Spirit Roots. Take it and cultivate.”
Taking the manual, I opened it, and my eyes lit at once.
The technique was genuinely profound, far beyond anything I had been working with.
“Thank you, Master.”
Elder Qi waved it off. “I’ll handle your affairs. As for the tournament, keep competing. Just remember to hold back. Don’t expose too much.”
“Understood, disciple.”
After leaving the courtyard, I went back to the arena.
The tournament went on.
None of my remaining opponents were weak, but I won each match by a hair.
Every fight looked like a grind, like I had poured everything in and barely scraped through.
No one suspected a thing.
That a mixed spirit root had come this far was shocking enough.
I finished in the top ten.
In the tenth match, I “lost” to my opponent and was eliminated.
Final ranking: ninth.
No championship, but it was astonishing enough.
The top ten, with a mixed spirit root among them.
Word spread through the sect within the hour.
Everyone was talking.
“That mixed spirit root is a real miracle.”
“Maybe the Spirit Testing Stone was faulty.”
“One way or another, top ten proves he’s got real strength.”
Wang Hu looked worse than anyone. He hadn’t even made the top fifty.
Sun Ming stayed sullen for days. Losing to me had settled in his chest like a shadow.
Su Qingyue found me. “Congratulations on the top ten, Junior Brother Chu.”
“Thank you, Senior Sister.”
She looked at me, on the verge of saying more. “Are you… really a mixed spirit root?”
I smiled and said nothing.
She didn’t press. “Either way, you’re strong. I believe you’ll become a true powerhouse one day.”
She turned and left.
I watched her go, thinking. She really was a sharp one.
A pity it was still too early to tell her the truth.
After becoming Elder Qi’s disciple, my cultivation progressed by leaps and bounds.
Profound beyond measure, the Five Elements Return to Origin Art. My cultivation speed was several times what it had been before.
Another month, and I broke through to the fifth layer of Qi Refining.
Two months after that, the sixth layer.
Well pleased with my progress, Elder Qi often guided my cultivation personally.
“The advantage of a Five-Element Spirit Root is not only how fast it cultivates. It is that the five elements’ power undergoes mutual generation and conquest, endless and unbroken.”
“Right now you’ve only grasped the most basic use of it. A true expert can wield the power of all five elements at once and shape it into a powerful composite technique.”
Elder Qi demonstrated as he spoke.
Spiritual qi of the five elements — wood, metal, water, fire, earth — gathered in his palm, then fused into a single massive sphere of energy.
The sphere radiated a crushing pressure, as if it might explode at any moment.
“We call this the Five Elements Unification Art. Its might is several times that of any single attribute.”
A careless wave of Elder Qi’s hand sent the sphere shooting out to blast a boulder in the distance to pieces.
I was dumbfounded.
So this was the true power of a Five-Element Spirit Root.
“Reaching that level will take a long while yet,” Elder Qi said. “But with your aptitude, three years at most.”
“This disciple will do his utmost.”
Elder Qi nodded. “Oh, that reminds me. In three months the sect will open a secret realm trial. Every disciple in the Qi Refining stage may take part.”
“There will be many opportunities inside, and many dangers too. I suggest you try it. It will do a great deal for your strength.”
“Understood,” I said.
The three months passed in a flash.
In the Grand Hall, the Sect Master himself announced the opening of the secret realm.
“The Heavenly Origin Secret Realm opens once every ten years. Inside are Ancient Ruins, and Heavenly Treasures as well.”
“But it holds powerful demonic beasts and every kind of danger as well. Over the years, only half the disciples who entered ever came back alive.”
“So whether to take part is your own choice.”
Once the Sect Master had finished, the hall broke into discussion.
Some were eager to try. Others hesitated.
Su Qingyue spoke quietly at my side. “Are you going to take part, Junior Brother Chu?”
“I will,” I said with a nod.
“Then we’ll look after each other in there.”
“Good.”
Sun Ming signed up for the secret realm trial as well.
Ever since I beat him, he had been nursing a knot of frustration, determined to prove himself.
Wang Hu did not sign up. He knew he was not strong enough.
When registration closed, a little over three hundred disciples had signed up.
Just over two hundred of them were Outer Disciples, and a little more than a hundred were Inner Disciples.
On the day the secret realm opened, every disciple taking part gathered before the Teleportation Formation on the sect’s Back Mountain.
In person, the Sect Master presided over the opening rite.
“Heavenly Origin Secret Realm—open!”
At the Sect Master’s command, the Teleportation Formation blazed with blinding light.
Light enveloped every disciple, and they vanished where they stood.
In the next instant, I was standing in an unfamiliar forest.
Thick mist hung everywhere, and visibility was almost nil.
Not far off, a demonic beast roared. It did not sound weak.
I looked around warily, ready to explore the secret realm.
Suddenly a figure burst out of the mist.
It was Su Qingyue.
“Junior Brother Chu!” Su Qingyue saw me and let out a breath. “Thank goodness. I thought I’d be going it alone.”
“Senior Sister, let’s stay together.”
“Alright.”
The two of us traveled together, pressing deeper into the secret realm.
A fair number of demonic beasts crossed our path as we went, and we killed them all together.
Su Qingyue’s strength was genuinely impressive. She was already at the eighth layer of Qi Refining.
On top of that, her Wood-Water Dual Spirit Root gave her formidable healing and support abilities.
We worked well together.
After roughly half a day’s walk, an ancient stone hall appeared ahead.
Four characters were carved above the door of the stone hall: Five Elements Inheritance.
Su Qingyue cried in surprise, “The Five Elements Inheritance? Could this be a ruin of the ancient Five Elements Sect?”
“The Five Elements Sect?”
“Legend says that in ancient times there was a mighty sect called the Five Elements Sect. All of its disciples had a Five-Element Spirit Root, and their power was enormous.”
“Then, for reasons unknown, the Five Elements Sect vanished overnight. To think their inheritance ended up in a place like this.”
Su Qingyue turned to me. “Shall we take a look inside, Junior Brother Chu?”
I nodded. “Let’s go in.”
We pushed open the gates of the stone hall and walked inside.
Inside was an enormous chamber, and at its center stood five stone pedestals.
On each pedestal rested a sphere of light, one for each element: metal, wood, water, fire, and earth.
At the water-attribute pedestal, Su Qingyue reached out to touch the sphere.
The sphere melted into her body in an instant.
“Such dense water-attribute spiritual qi!” Su Qingyue said, delighted. “I can feel my Cultivation Base has risen quite a bit.”
I walked to the center and touched all five spheres at once.
All five spheres flew toward me at once and merged into my body.
All five elements’ spiritual qi surged through me in an instant.
From the sixth layer of Qi Refining my Cultivation Base broke straight through to the seventh, and it kept climbing.
The eighth layer of Qi Refining!
The ninth layer of Qi Refining!
I finally settled at the ninth layer’s peak, one step from a breakthrough to Foundation Establishment.
Su Qingyue stared at me, shocked. “Junior Brother Chu, you…”
An aged voice drifted from the depths of the stone hall.
“One who can absorb all five elements at once must possess a Five-Element Spirit Root. Little one, it seems you are the successor I have been waiting for.”
As the voice faded, a translucent figure stepped out from the depths of the stone hall.
A white-haired old man in a five-colored robe, his eyes deep and unfathomable.
“This Junior Chu Xing pays his respects, Senior,” I said, bowing respectfully.
He nodded. “None of that. This Old Man is the last sect lord of the Five Elements Sect, fallen ten thousand years ago. What you see now is only a wisp of my Soul, left behind.”
“The Five Elements Sect?” Su Qingyue cried. “Senior, you are the Sect Lord of the Five Elements Sect?”
“I am,” the old man said, looking at me. “Little one, you have a Five-Element Spirit Root — a perfect one, at that. An aptitude like yours is one in one hundred million.”
I said nothing.
The old man went on. “The Five Elements Sect fell because it provoked a powerful enemy. Not one soul in the entire sect survived.”
“Before I died, I sealed the sect’s Inheritance here and waited for the one destined to find it.”
“Now that you have come, this Inheritance is yours.”
With that, the old man swept his hand, and an ancient book appeared before me.
“This is the Five Elements Heavenly Art, the guardian Cultivation Technique of the Five Elements Sect. Cultivate it to completion and you will command the five elements’ power in heaven and earth, limitless in might.”
I took up the book and felt the terrifying energy contained within it.
“Thank you, Senior.”
He waved the thanks aside. “No need to thank me. That you obtained this Inheritance is your own fortuitous encounter.”
“But I warn you: a Five-Element Spirit Root is powerful, but it invites envy. Hide it well. Do not reveal it lightly.”
“Understood,” I said.
He glanced at me. “You are clever, hiding your strength. That is good. Keep it up.”
“Once you are strong enough, revealing it will not be too late.”
As he spoke, the white-haired figure began to fade.
“My Soul can no longer hold together. These are my last words.”
“Remember: the five elements undergo mutual generation and conquest, and all things return to origin. Grasp these eight characters and you will become a true expert.”
With those words, the figure dissipated completely.
The stone hall began to collapse as well.
“Hurry!” I pulled Su Qingyue and rushed out of the stone hall.
The moment we got out, the stone hall collapsed entirely into ruins.
Su Qingyue breathed hard, staring at the ruins. “What a waste. If we could have explored a bit more, there might have been other treasures.”
I smiled. “Obtaining the Inheritance is already more than enough.”
Su Qingyue looked at me. “Junior Brother Chu, you…”
I knew what she wanted to ask. “Senior Sister, please keep this to yourself.”
Su Qingyue fell silent a moment, then nodded. “Don’t worry. I won’t tell anyone.”
“Thank you.”
We pressed deeper into the secret realm, searching for other opportunities.
We ran into more disciples as we went — some gathering Spirit Medicine, others hunting demonic beasts.
Some were fighting over treasures, trading blows.
We steered clear of those conflicts and focused on exploring.
Two days later, we arrived at a valley.
The valley was thick with Spirit Medicine, rare varieties among them.
Su Qingyue exclaimed delightedly, “Junior Brother Chu, there’s so much Spirit Medicine here! Let’s gather it quickly.”
A group of people walked over from the other side.
Their leader was Sun Ming.
When he saw me, his eyes turned cold. “Chu Xing. I didn’t expect to find you here.”
My gaze was level. “Senior Brother Sun, long time no see.”
Sun Ming’s voice was cold. “Long time no see? You beat me in that Duel, and I have remembered it ever since.”
“Today is convenient. Let’s have another bout.”
I shook my head. “No need.”
“No need?” Sun Ming said furiously. “You’re scared, aren’t you?”
“Think what you like.”
My attitude enraged him. “If you won’t move, I’ll make the first move.”
He cast the Fireball Technique straight at me.
I sidestepped and did not strike back.
Su Qingyue stepped forward. “Sun Ming, what do you think you’re doing! The secret realm is dangerous enough as it is. We should be helping each other, not fighting among ourselves.”
Sun Ming cut in. “Senior Sister Su, stop shielding him. Beaten by a mixed spirit root — there has to be something wrong with that.”
“Today I’m going to expose him for what he is.”
With that, Sun Ming attacked again.
This time he used his full strength, and the Fireball Technique’s power was ferocious.
I had no choice but to defend.
Palm force met fireball in a thunderous collision.
Sun Ming was blasted back several steps, his face ugly. “I knew there was something wrong with you! How could a mixed spirit root have strength like this!”
The few disciples behind him closed in. “He’s right,” one of them echoed. “This one definitely cheated.”
“Let’s take him together!”
Su Qingyue panicked. “Don’t do anything rash!”
An enormous beast roar rolled in from the distance.
The ground began to shake.
A colossal demonic beast charged out from the depths of the valley.
A Foundation Establishment-stage demonic beast, and its power was immense.
Everyone froze.
“A Foundation Establishment-stage demonic beast?!”
“Run!”
The demonic beast roared and charged, and everyone scattered.
Sun Ming ran fastest, and in the blink of an eye he was gone.
Su Qingyue was frozen in place, terrified.
I seized her arm. “Hurry!”
It gave chase without pause, its speed ferocious.
I dragged Su Qingyue into a desperate run, but the demonic beast caught up all the same.
“Junior Brother Chu, go!” Su Qingyue shoved me away. “I’ll hold it off.”
“Don’t be stupid. You’re no match for it.”
I stepped in front of Su Qingyue and faced the demonic beast.
A Foundation Establishment-stage demonic beast was the equal of a Foundation Establishment-stage cultivator.
With my Cultivation Base at the ninth layer of Qi Refining, I was no match at all.
But if I drew on the Five Elements Heavenly Art’s power…
I took a deep breath and decided to risk it.
My five-element spiritual qi cycled furiously, running the course the Five Elements Heavenly Art laid out.
My presence surged in an instant.
Sensing the threat, the demonic beast roared and charged.
Both hands snapped into a seal, and the five-element spiritual qi erupted all at once.
“Five Elements as One, All Things Return to Origin!”
A massive pillar of five-colored light shot from my hands and struck the demonic beast square on.
Boom!
It was hurled ten-odd meters through the air and slammed into the ground.
It struggled to rise, but it fell.
I was spent too, barely able to stand.
That last strike had drained every bit of my spiritual qi.
Su Qingyue was stunned. “Junior Brother Chu, you…”
“I’m fine,” I said, gasping. “Let’s get out of here first.”
We left the valley and found a safe place to rest.
Su Qingyue kept staring at me, her eyes complicated.
“Junior Brother Chu, what Spirit Root are you, really?”
I was silent a moment. “Senior Sister, some things can’t be said.”
“I understand.” Su Qingyue nodded. “Everyone has secrets. I won’t pry.”
“But I will say this: whatever Spirit Root you are, you’re the strongest fellow disciple I have ever seen.”
I gave a bitter smile. “You flatter me, Senior Sister.”
After a day’s rest, most of my spiritual qi had recovered.
We went on exploring the secret realm and found more Spirit Medicine and treasures.
Five days later, the secret realm trial ended.
All the disciples were teleported back to the sect.
Of the three hundred-odd disciples in this trial, only two hundred-odd came back alive.
The death rate was close to thirty percent.
When the Sect Master asked about the trial, many disciples mentioned the Foundation Establishment-stage demonic beast in the valley.
“Who killed that demonic beast?” the Sect Master asked.
Everyone shook their heads, saying they didn’t know.
Sun Ming spoke from the side, snide. “Could it have been Chu Xing? His strength is bizarre. Who knows what secret he’s hiding.”
The Sect Master turned his gaze on me. “Chu Xing. What do you say to that?”
I shook my head. “This disciple only escaped by luck. I did not kill the demonic beast.”
He nodded and did not press.
After the trial, the sect handed out rewards according to what each had gained.
Because I had gathered a good deal of rare Spirit Medicine, I was awarded one thousand Spirit Stones.
Sun Ming’s haul was not small either, but his face stayed gloomy.
Clearly, his suspicion of me was deepening.
Back at my cave residence, I immediately entered closed-door cultivation.
This trip to the secret realm had been a huge haul.
I had not only gained the Five Elements Heavenly Art, but pushed my Cultivation Base to the top of the ninth layer of Qi Refining as well.
A little more effort and I could break through to Foundation Establishment.
Once I broke through to Foundation Establishment, my strength would take a qualitative leap.
By then, even revealing my identity would hold no fear.
Three months later, I finally touched the threshold of Foundation Establishment.
But just then, Elder Qi suddenly came looking for me.
“Chu Xing, there is something I must tell you.” Elder Qi’s expression was grave.
“Master, what is it?”
“Sun Ming has reported to the sect that you concealed your strength and deceived the sect.”
I frowned. “Does he have evidence?”
“No. But he says he wants your Spirit Root retested.”
“The Sect Master has agreed. In three days, you will be retested before all the elders.”
I fell silent. “Master, what should I do?”
Elder Qi sighed. “I’m afraid this can no longer be kept quiet.”
“But perhaps it is for the best. At your current strength, even revealing it holds no fear.”
“In three days, let them see what a true genius really is.”
Three days later, in the sect’s Grand Hall.
Every elder and core disciple had gathered here.
On the high seat sat the Sect Master, and more than ten elders stood below.
In the center of the hall, every eye was on me.
To one side stood Sun Ming, his eyes full of triumph. “Sect Master, this disciple suspects Chu Xing of concealing his strength and deceiving the sect. I beg the Sect Master to see justice done.”
The Sect Master’s eyes found me. “Chu Xing, do you have anything to say?”
I said calmly, “This disciple will follow whatever arrangement the sect makes.”
He nodded. “Very well. Retest him.”
A brand-new Spirit Testing Stone was carried in.
A top-grade Spirit Testing Stone, treasured by the sect and utterly precise.
“Chu Xing, place your hand on it,” the Sect Master said.
I drew a steadying breath and walked up to the Spirit Testing Stone.
Everyone around me held their breath, waiting for the result.
I pressed my hand onto the Spirit Testing Stone.
In an instant, five-colored light shot into the sky.
The light of all five elements — metal, wood, water, fire, earth — burst forth at once, illuminating the entire hall.
Everyone was shaken.
“Is this… a Five-Element Spirit Root?!”
“Impossible! How can it be a Five-Element Spirit Root!”
“And this purity… Heavens, it’s a perfect Five-Element Spirit Root!”
Sun Ming’s eyes went wide, incredulous. “How can this be…”
“A Five-Element Spirit Root! A perfect one!” From his seat the Sect Master shot up, face alight.
“Chu Xing, why didn’t you say so sooner!”
My voice stayed level. “The test showed a mixed spirit root. Had I spoken, no one would have believed me. So I kept it hidden until now.”
He laughed loudly. “Good! Good! Good! My Azure Cloud Sect has produced a Five-Element Spirit Root genius!”
“From today, Chu Xing is a Core Disciple of our sect, with the highest treatment!”
“All cultivation resources go to him first!”
The elders nodded one after another, their eyes full of approval.
Only Sun Ming had gone ashen, swaying on his feet, barely able to stand.
He had never imagined that the mixed spirit root he had always looked down on was a Five-Element Spirit Root, one in ten thousand.
And a perfect one at that.
The blow was too much.
Su Qingyue smiled at me from the crowd, her eyes full of quiet joy.
She had guessed long ago. She had simply never said it.
Elder Qi was pleased as well. “Sect Master, Chu Xing is already my disciple.”
He smiled. “You truly found yourself a treasure, Elder Qi.”
“That said, cultivating a Five-Element Spirit Root requires enormous resources. The sect will support you fully.”
“Thank you, Sect Master,” I said, bowing respectfully.
He waved a hand. “No need for courtesy. You are the future hope of our sect.”
“Oh, right. What realm are you at now?”
“The ninth layer of Qi Refining, at its peak. I’m about to break through to Foundation Establishment.”
Surprise crossed the Sect Master’s face. “So fast? How long since you joined the sect?”
“Eight months.”
“From the first layer of Qi Refining to the ninth in eight months?” His breath caught. “Can this be the cultivation speed of a Five-Element Spirit Root?”
“Too terrifying!”
The elders beside him exclaimed in awe as well.
An ordinary disciple needed at least five years to climb from Qi Refining’s first layer to its ninth.
Even a genius needed two or three.
Chu Xing had done it in eight months.
Such speed was simply staggering.
“Chu Xing, what do you plan to do next?” the Sect Master asked.
“This disciple wishes to enter closed-door cultivation and break through to Foundation Establishment.”
“Good!” He swept his hand grandly. “I’ll give you our best seclusion chamber. Inside, the spiritual qi concentration is ten times that of the outside.”
“Thank you, Sect Master.”
My status changed completely from this day on.
From a mixed spirit root no one bothered to look at, I had become a Five-Element Spirit Root genius under everyone’s gaze.
Everyone looked at me differently now.
The ones who had mocked me now wanted to kneel and apologize.
Those who had bullied me now walked wide of me when they saw me.
Wang Hu was too frightened to leave his home, afraid I would come to settle accounts.
But I could not be bothered with him.
A bit player like that wasn’t worth the time.
In the closed-door cultivation chamber, the spiritual qi was so thick it was almost solid.
I sat cross-legged and began the assault on Foundation Establishment.
From the Qi Refining stage to Foundation Establishment was the first great barrier on the road of cultivation.
Countless cultivators were stuck here, unable to break through for their entire lives.
But for a Five-Element Spirit Root, this barrier was not so difficult.
I cycled the Five Elements Heavenly Art, and the five-element spiritual qi in my body began to fuse.
Metal feeds Water, Water feeds Wood, Wood feeds Fire, Fire feeds Earth, Earth feeds Metal.
The five elements feed one another in an endless cycle.
The spiritual qi in my body grew ever denser, until at last it condensed into liquid.
This was the key to Foundation Establishment: liquefying the spiritual qi.
Only by liquefying the spiritual qi could one lay a true foundation and step into Foundation Establishment.
Boom!
With a thunderclap, the spiritual qi in my body liquefied completely.
In my Dantian, a lake of spiritual qi took shape, five-colored light swirling through it.
Foundation Establishment succeeded!
My Foundation Establishment, though, differed from an ordinary cultivator’s.
An ordinary cultivator’s spiritual qi lake held a single color.
Mine held five, one for each of the five elements.
It meant my foundation was sturdier than an ordinary cultivator’s, with greater potential as well.
I opened my eyes and felt the surging power within me.
Foundation Establishment. I had finally broken through.
From now on, I had truly set foot on the path of cultivation.
When I walked out of the chamber, Elder Qi was already waiting outside.
“You broke through?”
“Yes. This disciple has reached Foundation Establishment.”
Elder Qi nodded in satisfaction. “Not bad. Three months to break through to Foundation Establishment — that speed is already fast enough.”
“Next, consolidate your Realm. Do not rush for more.”
“Understood,” I said.
Elder Qi considered briefly. “Oh, that reminds me. Three months from now, several nearby sects will jointly host a Tournament.”
“Any disciple below Foundation Establishment may take part.”
“It is a good chance to show your strength, and to see the geniuses of other sects.”
“Are you interested?”
I thought it over and nodded. “This disciple is willing to take part.”
“Good. Then it’s settled.”
For three months, I kept consolidating my Realm.
The Early Stage of Foundation Establishment was fully stabilized.
I had also cultivated several techniques of the five elements.
The metal-attribute Diamond Sword Qi, edged beyond measure.
The wood-attribute Unending Vitality, with tremendous restorative power.
The water-attribute Frost Technique, capable of freezing enemies solid.
The fire-attribute Karmic Fire Scorches the Heavens, terrifying in power.
The earth-attribute Great Earth Shield, astonishing in defense.
Each of these five techniques was strong on its own.
And when combined, their power multiplied.
The Tournament was held on schedule.
Its site was the Main Peak of the Azure Cloud Sect.
Disciples from more than ten nearby sects had come, over a thousand people in all.
A grand gathering — and a chance for the disciples of every sect to spar and exchange.
Standing on the high platform, the Sect Master addressed them: “Everyone, welcome to the Azure Cloud Sect…”
The disciples below were all sizing up the geniuses of the other sects.
“I hear the Crimson Fire Sect has a Single Fire Spirit Root genius. Only twenty, and already at the Middle Stage of Foundation Establishment.”
“And the Profound Water Sect’s girl — they say she’s a Wood-Water Dual Spirit Root, very strong.”
“Our Azure Cloud Sect has Senior Brother Chu too. Five-Element Spirit Root, stronger than all of them.”
In the crowd, Sun Ming listened as the talk went on, his face turning grim.
He had once been the genius everyone discussed.
Now the talk was all of Chu Xing.
The gap was more than he could accept.
The contest began quickly.
The first round was an elimination brawl: a thousand disciples in a free-for-all, with one hundred to remain.
I stood in a corner, in no hurry to act.
The disciples around me fought in a frenzy, techniques flying everywhere.
I only drifted aside, now and then striking to knock back whoever came close.
Half a shichen (one hour) later, the first round ended.
I advanced to the next round, having spent almost nothing.
The second round was a ring tournament: one hundred disciples, matched by lot.
My drawn opponent was the Crimson Fire Sect’s Single Fire Spirit Root genius, named Yan Lie.
Yan Lie looked at me on the ring, his eyes burning with fighting spirit. “So you’re the Azure Cloud Sect’s Five-Element Spirit Root?”
“I am.”
“Good. Let me see just how strong a Five-Element Spirit Root is.”
Yan Lie struck the moment the bout began.
He let fly every kind of fire-attribute technique in succession: Fireball Technique, Fire Wall Technique, Fire Dragon Technique.
The power was genuinely remarkable.
But for me, not enough.
I lifted my hand and water-attribute spiritual qi poured out, gathering into a Water Curtain.
Every fire-attribute technique was stopped by the Water Curtain.
“Water counters fire. Your fire techniques are useless against me.”
Yan Lie’s face changed. “Then try this!”
He formed a seal with both hands, and the flames on his body blazed hotter.
“Crimson Fire Scorches the Heavens!”
A massive column of fire shot into the sky and came hurtling toward me.
This was his strongest strike.
I shook my head. “Not enough.”
I formed the same seal with both hands, and the five-element spiritual qi erupted at once.
“Five Elements as One, All Things Return to Origin!”
Five-colored light converged into a pillar that met the column of fire head-on.
Boom!
The column of fire shattered instantly, and the pillar, its momentum unchecked, struck Yan Lie squarely.
Yan Lie was blasted off the ring and hit the ground hard.
The whole venue fell silent.
Everyone stared at me, shocked.
“So strong…”
“Is this the power of a Five-Element Spirit Root?”
“Too terrifying!”
The contest went on, and I cut down every opponent in my path.
No one was my match.
Before long I reached the finals.
My opponent was that female disciple from the Profound Water Sect, named Shui Rou.
A Wood-Water Dual Spirit Root, the Middle Stage of Foundation Establishment, and genuinely strong.
On the ring, Shui Rou looked at me, her eyes complicated. “Senior Brother Chu, I’ve long heard of your fame.”
“Senior Sister Shui is too kind.”
“Even so, I won’t show mercy.”
“Please.”
The bout began, and Shui Rou immediately unleashed techniques of water and wood.
Waves rolled and vines coiled, attack and defense in one.
She was a powerful opponent, no question.
But unfortunately for her, she had drawn me.
A Five-Element Spirit Root counters every single- or dual-attribute Spirit Root.
With a careless wave of my hand, I turned metal-attribute spiritual qi into countless sword beams and cut every vine to pieces.
Another wave, and fire-attribute spiritual qi evaporated all the water.
None of Shui Rou’s attacks landed.
She gritted her teeth and kept attacking, but whatever she tried, I brushed it aside with ease.
Exhausted, she conceded.
“I lost,” Shui Rou said with a bitter smile. “The Five-Element Spirit Root lives up to its name.”
From the high platform, the Sect Master laughed loudly. “Good! Chu Xing has brought honor to our Azure Cloud Sect!”
Azure Cloud Sect disciples cheered all around.
The disciples of other sects looked at me with envy.
Such an aptitude was far too rare.
After the contest, elders from every sect came looking for me.
Some wanted to win me over, some wanted to make my acquaintance.
One sect even offered to trade me an enormous hoard of cultivation resources if I would join them.
The refusal was instant. “Chu Xing is a Core Disciple of my Azure Cloud Sect. No one is taking him.”
Back at the sect, my standing rose once more.
Rewards came personally from the Sect Master: immense cultivation resources, and the sect’s Scripture Pavilion thrown open to me, to read whatever I liked.
Not even an Inner Sect elder enjoyed such treatment.
Elder Qi came to find me. “Chu Xing, as of today you are a Core Disciple of the sect, and a candidate for future Sect Lord.”
“You must cultivate harder. You cannot fail the sect’s expectations.”
“Understood,” I said.
Elder Qi looked at me, his eyes full of quiet satisfaction. “Back when I first saw you in the Herb Garden, I knew you were no ordinary child.”
“To think you were a Five-Element Spirit Root all along.”
“You are the finest disciple I have ever taken in my life.”
I said respectfully, “It is all thanks to your excellent teaching, Master.”
Elder Qi laughed. “You brat. You certainly know how to talk.”
“Oh, that reminds me. The sect intends to send you to the Heavenly Origin Grand Tournament three years from now.”
“The Heavenly Origin Grand Tournament?”
“It is the grandest contest in the entire Cultivation World. The geniuses of every top sect will take part.”
“If you place well there, your name will spread across the whole Cultivation World.”
I nodded. “This disciple will do his best.”
“Three years is enough for you to break through to the Late Stage of Foundation Establishment,” Elder Qi said. “By then you will be the strongest of the Azure Cloud Sect’s young generation.”
In the days that followed, I cultivated with everything I had.
The profundities of the Five Elements Heavenly Art revealed themselves bit by bit.
My Cultivation Base rose steadily.
A year later, I broke through to the Middle Stage of Foundation Establishment.
Two years after that, the Late Stage.
Three years on, I stood at the peak of Foundation Establishment, ready to break through to the Golden Core stage at any moment.
This cultivation speed shocked the entire sect.
An ordinary cultivator needed at least twenty years to go from the Early Stage of Foundation Establishment to its peak.
I had done it in three.
Such was the terror of a Five-Element Spirit Root.
The Heavenly Origin Grand Tournament was held on schedule.
Geniuses from every great sect gathered in one place.
Every one of them was the finest disciple of their sect.
Some had Heavenly Spirit Roots, some had Mutated Spirit Roots, and others possessed Special Constitutions.
None of them was simple.
But I had confidence.
The Five-Element Spirit Root yields to no one.
The contest began, and no one could stand in my way.
No one could stand against the power of my five elements.
I reached the finals once more.
My final opponent was a cultivator with a Heavenly Spirit Root, immensely strong.
But the five elements countered him, and he lost.
I took the championship of the Heavenly Origin Grand Tournament.
From this day on, my name spread across the entire Cultivation World.
Five-Element Spirit Root, Chu Xing.
I became a legend on everyone’s lips.
After the Heavenly Origin Grand Tournament ended, I returned to the Azure Cloud Sect.
Personally, the Sect Master greeted me. “Chu Xing, you have brought honor to the sect!”
“From today, you are the Young Sect Lord of our Azure Cloud Sect!”
“The seat of Sect Lord will be yours!”
The elders around me offered their congratulations one after another.
I bowed respectfully. “Thank you for your great favor, Sect Master.”
Elder Qi walked over and clapped me on the shoulder. “Brat, you did it.”
“Master, it is all down to your excellent teaching.”
Elder Qi smiled and shook his head. “I only gave you an opportunity. The one who truly walked to this point today is you yourself.”
“Your effort and your talent are both irreplaceable.”
I thought back to the moment I had been judged a mixed spirit root before the Spirit Testing Stone.
Everyone had mocked me.
But I had not given up.
I knew my true strength.
I was only waiting for an opportunity.
Now, the opportunity had come.
I had proven myself.
A Five-Element Spirit Root, not a mixed spirit root.
A genius one in ten thousand.
Su Qingyue walked over, smiling. “Senior Brother Chu, congratulations.”
“Thank you, Senior Sister.”
“Do you remember the early days in the Herb Garden?” Su Qingyue said with a smile. “Even then I could tell you were no ordinary person.”
“It seems my instinct was right.”
I smiled. “Senior Sister, thank you for looking after me all this time.”
Sun Ming stood in the distance, watching it all in silence.
His eyes were full of complexity.
Once, he had been the genius everyone watched.
Now, everyone was talking about Chu Xing.
But he no longer felt envy.
Because he knew that Chu Xing’s achievements were something he could never reach.
The Five-Element Spirit Root was a gap in talent itself.
No amount of effort could close it.
He could only accept reality.
Wang Hu, for his part, regretted it deeply.
If he had not bullied Chu Xing back then, he might still have been able to curry favor now.
But now it was all too late.
At night, I stood at the summit of the peak, looking down over the entire sect.
Thinking back on everything I had been through, my heart was filled with emotion.
From the moment I was judged a mixed spirit root, I had known this road would not be easy.
But I had not given up.
I hid my strength and cultivated in silence.
I waited for my chance, storing deep and releasing thin.
I had proved myself.
Five-Element Spirit Root, Chu Xing.
That name would resound throughout the entire Cultivation World.
And this was only the beginning.
The road ahead was still long.
Golden Core, Nascent Soul, Spirit Severing…
I would walk it step by step.
Until I stood at the very peak of the Cultivation World.
In the distance, Elder Qi looked at my back and nodded in satisfaction.
“I did not misjudge this disciple.”
“Elder Qi, you found yourself a treasure,” the Sect Master chimed in.
“Ha, indeed.” Elder Qi chuckled. “But this is also a blessing for the sect.”
“With Chu Xing here, our Azure Cloud Sect is sure to rise.”
He nodded. “Exactly. The future belongs to Chu Xing, and to the Azure Cloud Sect.”
On the mountain peak, I closed my eyes and felt the five elements’ power surging within me.