Within the War Heart Hall nestled on the mountainside, Zhan Yunlan and the other seven figures reassembled, their brows deeply furrowed. After a grueling night spent searching hundreds of miles around, they had discovered absolutely nothing.

Eight Ninth-Rank powerhouses, plus the ancient ancestor presiding over War God Mountain—the spiritual senses of these nine intertwined to form an impenetrable net. It was an array so potent that even an ant could not escape detection. The entity that had spied upon War God Mountain could not possibly have fled that quickly, yet not a trace of him had been revealed, as if he had vanished into thin air.

The eight exchanged silent glances; the entire affair felt profoundly uncanny.

Judging by the strength of that individual's spiritual sense, he could not have advanced to the Ninth Rank very long ago. For someone of that level, even if he employed some secret technique, it might be possible to elude the vigilance of these few elders, but it was utterly impossible to deceive the Ancestor and then manage to lie low in "Ring Moon City" below the mountain and escape undetected after surveying War God Mountain.

As the Clan Leader and Grand Elders of the War Clan, they were acutely aware of the Ancestor’s terrifying might. The Ancestor was ancient; by seniority, the eight assembled in the War Heart Hall were essentially his descendants’ descendants’ descendants.

Over two centuries ago, he had already attained the rank of a Ninth-Rank Black Spirit Master.

Had it not been for certain unique circumstances compelling him to suppress his trial speed, he might long ago have become the legendary "Spirit Venerable." Even now, while still a Ninth-Rank Black Spirit Master, his strength far surpassed that of an ordinary expert at the same tier.

Zhan Yunlan and the others knew perfectly well that if the eight within the War Heart Hall were to clash with the Ancestor, the Ancestor would undoubtedly be the survivor, while they might not even have time to retaliate before joining their ancestors beneath the earth.

Who among the Black Spirit Masters in the entire Netherworld could manage to conceal themselves in Phantom Moon City from such an overwhelmingly powerful figure? Yet, this event, which nearly everyone deemed impossible, had transpired last night.

After a long silence, Zhan Yunlan's voice finally shattered the quiet of the War Heart Hall. "Grand Elders, since we failed to locate the individual, we must heighten our vigilance. We absolutely cannot allow the events of a thousand years ago to reoccur within the War Clan!"

"..."

The elders nodded silently, their expressions grim and weighty...

Waking up, the sky was bright; the hot water in the bath tub had long since turned cold. Discovering he had slept through the entire night in the tub, Nie Kong let out a soft chuckle. He quickly tidied himself and stepped outside, feeling remarkably refreshed and lighthearted. In terms of living arrangements, the treatment for disciples without clan lineage was identical to that of true clan disciples—exceptionally good. Each was provided with an elegant and refined courtyard closest to the mountain body in "Ring Moon City," they received one hundred Red Armors monthly, and food and clothing were entirely complimentary.

For the War Clan disciples, their sole responsibility was to strive relentlessly to advance their cultivation; all other trivial matters required no worry. This, precisely, was what Nie Kong had hoped for.

Following the quiet, stepped path up the mountain, Nie Kong soon reached the mountainside. Amidst the shadows of the dense woods lay a broad platform, upon which rose a magnificent hall. The plaque above the entrance bore three characters: War Heart Hall. At this moment, a hundred or so figures—men and women, generally between fifteen and twenty-five years old—were already gathered on the polished greenstone floor before the hall, which gleamed like a mirror. However, these individuals had consciously or unconsciously divided themselves into two distinct groups.

As Nie Kong stepped onto the flat ground, a quick scan allowed him to grasp the identity of these two crowds.

The group on the left maintained a more uniform appearance: the men were sturdy and tall, the women slender and graceful. Each had a small star marked on their brow, resembling proud little lions—they were clearly the native disciples born on War God Mountain;

The group on the right was smaller, less than half the size of the left, and consisted entirely of young men whose heights varied, as did their expressions—some expectant, some envious, some detached, some arrogant. These were likely the external disciples who had recently arrived at War God Mountain.

"Another external disciple."

"Haven't seen him before. Is he new?"

"I heard Uncle Tianlun brought one back from outside yesterday; it must be him! If Uncle Tianlun took an interest, his cultivation should be quite good."

"..."

"Everyone look, this person's skin is so strange!"

"..."

What began as casual murmuring transformed after that startled outcry.

The crowd finally noticed the uniqueness of this new external disciple. While his skin color wasn't drastically different from theirs, a faint, ethereal glow seemed to linger beneath his skin. Viewed from a distance, he appeared almost like a piece of human-shaped ancient jade.

For a moment, nearly all gazes fixed upon Nie Kong outside the War Heart Hall—some curious, some puzzled, some astonished...

Nie Kong had anticipated this situation, yet he felt helpless. On his journey here, he had been trying to revert his skin to its normal state, but without success. Of course, medicine might work.

However, the Netherworld was vastly different from the Heaven Spirit Continent, and the medicinal herbs were entirely distinct. This was a crucial time for cultivation; Nie Kong had no time to waste on such matters. Besides, being stared at for a short while wouldn't have any substantial effect on him.

Under the scrutiny of the crowd, Nie Kong walked to the rear of the group of external disciples.

The intention of the War Clan's high-ranking officials was certainly not to see a clear division between their own disciples and the external ones. But the War Clan children, basking in the glory of their ancestors, possessed an innate pride, whereas the external disciples could only rely on their own strength to fully integrate into the clan.

If he stood with the left group, he would inevitably face contempt from the clan disciples; standing in the middle might lead to rejection from both sides.

As a newcomer to the War Clan, Nie Kong preferred to follow the majority rather than stand out immediately.

What reassured Nie Kong was that he had arrived at War God Mountain less than half a day ago, and this was his first appearance before these clan and external disciples. Though everyone was deeply interested in the origin of his skin condition, no one suspected that Nie Kong’s anomaly had only manifested yesterday, and they did not connect it to the "Heart Drum Battle Sound."

Novelty fades quickly. Seeing Nie Kong standing motionless, resembling wood or clay rather than jade, the crowd soon grew bored, and their attention shifted back to the previous topic of discussion.

"..."

"Brother Li Xiao is truly formidable, managing to endure up to the 'Six-Nine Battle Sound' round. He is certain to receive an exceptional Spirit Art today."

"Indeed! I heard that with every round of the 'Heart Drum Battle Sound,' the required endurance against the pain doubles. Especially when reaching the sixth round, even bearing to listen to one more resonance of the Battle Sound becomes incredibly difficult."

"Among us external disciples, four managed to last until the sixth round. Two only endured the first note of the sixth round, one made it to the second note, and only Senior Brother Li Xiao persisted through the sixth note. He has the best aptitude among us."

"..."

Li Xiao, the subject of the external disciples' discussion, was about twenty-three or twenty-four, dressed in white, with a tall, slender build and handsome features. His long hair flowed down his back, giving him an air of elegance and ease, and his face always held a faint, subtle smile—truly living up to his name.

Hearing the nearby compliments, Li Xiao showed no elation; his expression remained calm. "You flatter me. I am still far behind those senior brothers and sisters over there, and lasting one or two more notes of the 'Heart Drum Battle Sound' doesn't signify much."

"He has a degree of self-awareness."

A clear voice suddenly cut in from the left, originating from the group of War Clan disciples, laced with slight mockery and sarcasm.

Li Xiao appeared completely unfazed, merely offering a slight smile without responding. However, several external disciples beside him showed looks of indignation, though they moved their lips several times without returning the retort.

Seeing this, the War Clan disciples grew even more arrogant. Had the external disciples engaged in a tit-for-tat verbal spar, they might have gained a sliver more respect.

"This Li Xiao is not bad."

Upon hearing the War Clan disciple’s words, Nie Kong subtly raised his eyelids and cast a swift glance at Li Xiao. For this person to become an external disciple of the War Clan, his temperament must indeed be far beyond the ordinary—a fact evident in his reaction just now.

On the way to War God Mountain, Nie Kong had learned from Zhan Tianlun that all these external disciples had been recruited within the last three months. Before arriving at the War Clan, they had all practiced Spirit Arts from other sects. According to the original plan, they were scheduled to enter the "Spirit Listening Divine Platform" behind the War Heart Hall in two months to receive the Spirit Art best suited for them.

At that time, accompanying them onto the "Spirit Listening Divine Platform" would be some War Clan disciples. After refining the Nine Great Nether Stars using the "Nether Fiend Art," those clan disciples were all required to first cultivate the War Clan's exclusive "Heart Condensing Art." Upon fully mastering the "Heart Condensing Art," they typically reached a cultivation level of Three or Four Stages, which qualified them to ascend the annually opened "Spirit Listening Divine Platform." The War Clan disciples currently gathered here belonged to this category.

Originally, they too would have had to wait two months, just like the external disciples on the right, to obtain a suitable Spirit Art. However, just last night, they all received notice that the "Spirit Listening Divine Platform" would open early, this very morning.

This development was extremely sudden and had sparked considerable speculation within the War Clan. If they knew what transpired yesterday in the "Battle Sound Hall," they might understand why the "Spirit Listening Divine Platform" was opening two months ahead of schedule.

Of course, Nie Kong had been completely unaware of this detail previously.

When leaving the "Battle Sound Hall" yesterday, Zhan Tianlun and Zhan Tianyou had simply told him to report to the "War Heart Hall" this morning to accompany others to the "Spirit Listening Divine Platform" to acquire suitable Spirit Arts.

It wasn't until now, hearing the surrounding murmurs, that Nie Kong realized the "Spirit Listening Divine Platform" was opening early. Vaguely, Nie Kong sensed that this matter might be closely connected to his having listened to the "Nine-Nine Battle Sound."

"Perhaps receiving the Spirit Arts today is all thanks to me," Nie Kong thought with a silent smile. Losing interest in the surrounding chatter, he stood still, eyes looking at his nose, nose looking at his heart, perfectly poised like an old monk in meditation.

Time ticked by. The number of figures before the War Heart Hall gradually increased to about one hundred and twenty before stabilizing. Before long, greeted by the magnificent dawn light, the massive double doors of the "War Heart Hall" suddenly swung open...