Four sects arriving in Shuiyun Town simultaneously to recruit disciples was quite unusual! Seeing the doubt in Nie Kong's eyes, the youth spoke with a touch of smugness, "These four sects have always been at odds, only restrained because they belong to the same Upper Sect. Now that Fubo Mountain is clearly in decline, the other three sects are naturally stirring."

Nie Kong understood at once. "They've come to stir the pot for two reasons: first, to ensure Fubo Mountain recruits no disciples, and second, to use this occasion to test the attitude of the Upper Sect. If the Upper Sect does not intervene, it tacitly permits them to suppress Fubo Mountain."

"Exactly."

The youth was surprised by Nie Kong's swift comprehension, a flicker of astonishment crossing his face, quickly followed by a resigned sigh. "Fubo Mountain, Yin Soul Sect, Hunter Wind Valley, and Heart Devouring Sect—all are low-tier sects. Fubo Mountain used to be decent, but now it’s at the bottom rung of the low-tier sects. It can't compare to the Heart Devouring Sect at all. I have a cousin there. Given my aptitude, entering the Heart Devouring Sect would normally be difficult, but since all four sects are recruiting at once, maybe the Heart Devouring Sect will lower its standards. That’s why I rushed to Shuiyun Town as soon as I got my cousin’s letter. Thankfully, I wasn't too late."

Nie Kong nodded and smiled, "Then I wish brother success in becoming a disciple of the Heart Devouring Sect."

"Thank you, Big Brother," the youth replied with a wry smile. "But whether the Heart Devouring Sect lowers its recruitment criteria is still uncertain. I'm here just to try my luck. If I can't get into the Heart Devouring Sect this time, I'll have no chance to cultivate in this lifetime."

'Can one truly not cultivate without joining a sect?' Nie Kong mused inwardly, about to probe further, when he noticed the previously boisterous inn suddenly fall into a silence so profound a pin could be heard dropping. The atmosphere around them grew instantly strange.

Nie Kong felt a surge of surprise, raising his eyes slightly to see four young men standing at the entrance of the inn. They wore matching azure robes, the sleeves embroidered with exquisite white patterns that looked like flowing clouds, making them exceptionally conspicuous.

Several waiters bowed deeply, smiling obsequiously as they led the way. The four young men, however, walked toward the second floor without sparing anyone a glance, their expressions arrogant. In a moment, their figures vanished around the turn of the staircase, leaving only the sound of their footsteps echoing.

After a long pause, the sound of their steps completely faded away.

Downstairs, the inn erupted in a wave of relieved sighs, followed by chatter, though the volume was noticeably subdued.

Nie Kong narrowed his eyes, his mind dissecting the four men he had just observed.

They possessed vibrant life force, yet were simultaneously suffused with dense death energy! These must be the Black Spirit Masters from the Abyss of Depravity. Life force represents vitality, while death energy signifies cultivation. For a Black Spirit Master, perhaps the denser the death energy, the stronger the cultivation!

"Big Brother, did you see that? They are all disciples of the 'Hunter Wind Valley'..."

The youth suddenly lowered his voice, his gaze fixed on the staircase, an unmistakable envy coloring his eyes.

Seeing this, Nie Kong smiled faintly. The scene just now made everything clear to him: in this 'Abyss of Depravity,' the reverence ordinary people held for cultivators far surpassed that on the Heavenly Spirit Continent. This explained why Elder Lin in Huang Village became so panicked when he saw the three stalks of pitch-black medicinal herbs belonging to Huang Shan, assuming Nie Kong had collected them from Fubo Mountain. Even though Fubo Mountain was weak, in the eyes of the common folk, it remained an entity to be looked up to...

Late into the night, Shuiyun Town fell into deep silence.

"I didn't expect that the resources suitable for cultivation in the Netherworld would all be monopolized by sects large and small..."

In a humble guest room, Nie Kong frowned slightly, muttering to himself. The 'Netherworld' he spoke of was the 'Abyss of Depravity'; the former was simply what the humans here called the sealed continent, while the latter was the designation used on the Heavenly Spirit Continent.

After chatting with the youth named Huo Yan for over an hour, Nie Kong had managed, through indirect questioning, to glean a general understanding of the Netherworld's situation.

Unlike the Heavenly Spirit Continent, the sects here were strictly hierarchical: low-tier, mid-tier, high-tier, and super-tier. Low-tier minor sects like Fubo Mountain and Yin Soul Sect needed a mid-tier sect as a backer, otherwise they were easily annexed by others.

Similarly, mid-tier and high-tier sects all had their own Upper Sects. The sects of the Netherworld were distributed in a grand pyramid structure, with a sparse few high-tier and super-tier sects reigning supreme, claiming more than half of the entire Netherworld's cultivation resources.

Most frustrating was that in the Netherworld, only those pitch-black mountain ranges were suitable for cultivation. Ordinary people could only become Black Spirit Masters by joining a sect. Situations like on the Heavenly Spirit Continent, where one could become a master through self-cultivation, were absolutely impossible here.

'Join a sect...'

These words cycled endlessly through Nie Kong's mind.

To advance his cultivation—this seemed to be Nie Kong’s only viable path. However, given his current circumstances, joining a sect was not a simple matter. The greatest obstacle was his current cultivation level, which had already reached the third grade of Spirit Control.

"I need to find a way... to conceal my cultivation!" Nie Kong paced around the room, his mind racing.

"Dan Ling! Grandma, my soul power has finally recovered to the Dan Ling realm!" Unsure how much time had passed, a small and exquisite figure zipped out from Nie Kong's chest, hovering energetically before his eyes, its little face beaming with pride.

"Splash!"

Unfortunately, Nie Kong was preoccupied with how to hide his cultivation and had no energy to spare for Qing Yue. Her excitement and joy went completely unshared, leaving Qing Yue deflated. Fortunately, the noise from the 'Prison Fire Underworld Spring' inside the jade vial offered her a small measure of comfort.

Qing Yue ducked back into Nie Kong's chest, dragging the jade vial to the opening of his collar, grumbling vaguely, "Too bad this little thing is out of 'Nether Fire Soul Dew.' Otherwise, Grandma could make a second avatar for myself, and that would be wonderful—I could talk to myself."

"Second avatar?"

Hearing these words, a sudden spark of inspiration flashed through Nie Kong’s mind, and the tight frown on his brow instantly smoothed out. He promptly pinched Qing Yue's tiny waist and planted a resounding kiss on her cheek, laughing with delight, "Qing Yue, I truly adore you!"

"Hey! You’re covered in drool!"

Qing Yue’s body was so small that Nie Kong’s kiss covered her forehead, eyes, nose, mouth, and cheeks all at once. Enraged, she squinted, bared her teeth, and furiously rubbed her face with both tiny hands.

Nie Kong chuckled heartily, released Qing Yue, and then, with a thought, nine golden needles sprang from his Pet Backpack into his palm. However, just as he was about to begin, Nie Kong seemed to recall something, tucked the needles away, and slipped out of the room like a phantom.

Moments later, a dark shadow ghosted out of the inn, rocketing toward the outskirts of town.

About ten li from Shuiyun Town, Nie Kong finally stopped, choosing a secluded spot by the roadside to sit cross-legged. Concealing one's cultivation would cause fluctuations in spiritual energy, so it was best to be far from the inn, especially since the Black Spirit Masters from Hunter Wind Valley were staying there.

With a thought, a figure separated from Nie Kong's body and sat silently opposite him. The figure was dark green with crimson eyes—it was the 'Second Avatar' Nie Kong had only recently condensed. Yes, he would require the avatar to mask his cultivation.

Taking a slight breath, Nie Kong instructed, "Qing Yue, keep watch for me."

"Hmph hmph."

Qing Yue rolled her eyes and snorted twice in profound dissatisfaction, clearly still holding a grudge about Nie Kong having slobbered all over her face earlier.

Nie Kong paid her no mind, focusing his spirit, and took out the golden needles once more.

The gold light flickered as the nine needles pierced his hidden acupoints in rapid succession. He gently manipulated them with his fingertips, and a faint buzzing sound began to resonate through the mountains. As Nie Kong performed the 'Nine Revolutions Golden Needle Art,' he simultaneously reversed the flow of the 'Yin-Yang Spirit Devouring Art.'

"Boom!"

Within the Spiritual God Acupoint, the previously unblocked minor acupoints vibrated violently, and their direction of rotation simultaneously shifted. The minor acupoints above, which had all been spinning clockwise, now reversed; those below switched from counter-clockwise to clockwise.

As time quietly passed, the dark green Yin-Yang Diagram inside the Spiritual God Acupoint finally began to change. One side's black color faded while the green grew richer, and the other side was the exact opposite. In just a few minutes, the Yin-Yang emblem resolved into distinct emerald green on one side and pitch black on the other.

Once all the spiritual energy within the Spiritual God Acupoint was clearly separated into green and black, this transformation rapidly spread to the various meridians.

About fifteen minutes later, Nie Kong’s spiritual energy had completely separated. At that moment, the 'Second Avatar' opposite him suddenly extended its right palm and gently placed it on Nie Kong's shoulder.

"Whoosh!"

Instantly, the violently surging emerald spiritual energy surged toward the Second Avatar like a bursting tidal wave. In a mere instant, Nie Kong's body was left with only black energy, while all the emerald energy gathered within the avatar.

The black energy was the death energy absorbed by Nie Kong’s spiritual power, while the emerald energy was the wood spiritual power brimming with vitality. By reversing the cultivation art, Nie Kong had completely separated his own spiritual energy—the former remaining in the main body, the latter infused into the avatar.

As a result, although Nie Kong's main body still possessed acupoints, it would no longer exhibit any trace of wood spiritual power. However, truly concealing his cultivation required more than just separating the spiritual energy; the second step that followed was equally crucial.

"Buzz!"

Nie Kong's kneading speed began to increase, and the buzzing of the golden needles grew more intense. The first cycle of the 'Nine Revolutions Golden Needle Art' commenced. Nie Kong performed this technique precisely so he would appear to possess cultivation potential; only then could he successfully enter a sect.

When the fourth cycle was executed, the death energy within his body, which had quieted after the departure of the wood spiritual energy, finally showed movement, with wisps and threads beginning to permeate the nine hidden acupoints—noticing this, Nie Kong finally let out a silent sigh of relief.

Fifth cycle, sixth cycle...

Seventh cycle...

The speed at which the death energy entered the hidden acupoints continuously accelerated. By the time the eighth cycle was performed, the death energy had completely permeated the acupoints. Only then did the heavy stone weighing on Nie Kong’s heart finally lift. His finger movements gradually slowed, and the buzzing sound subsided into the black night...