The Eight Supreme Powers

"Right, Ji Ning. This book contains detailed records of every major power within our Anchan Commandery." Beishan Baiwei flipped his hand, producing a massive tome a full foot thick—like a shield. Its cover was blank. He passed it directly to Ji Ning.

Ji Ning stared at the shield-sized book, blinking. "This is... too big."

"You don't realize how vast the Anchan Commandery is!" Beishan Baiwei grinned. "This volume includes detailed information on every single power. It even introduces the signature magic treasures and techniques of their most formidable cultivators."

"Such detail?" Ji Ning was startled. "All I need is to pick a sect to join."

"I was too lazy to sort through it, so I just grabbed a copy of my clan's intelligence compendium on the major powers," Beishan Baiwei said with a smile. "This is one of the lower-classification volumes. The highly classified intelligence records fill several hundred volumes."

Ji Ning was speechless.

He only needed a bit of reference to choose a sect, and Beishan Baiwei had simply pulled out an intelligence manual. No wonder the cover was blank.

"Take it." Beishan Baiwei urged.

Ji Ning accepted it.

Beishan Baiwei continued, "Reading through this intelligence manual will take a while. But in truth, with your current strength, Ji Ning, you should aim to join the most elite power in the Anchan Commandery. Aside from the Yinglong Guard and the Anchan Marquis's estate, there are eight paramount powers in our commandery. Let me give you a brief overview first. Then you can cross-reference it with the manual for faster understanding."

Ji Ning nodded.

"These eight supreme powers are: three major sects, three major tribes, and two great cults." Beishan Baiwei spoke solemnly. "Each of them has an incredibly long history, deep foundations, and unfathomable strength. While other powers might have Immortals guarding them, compared to these eight, they are either lacking in Immortal-grade forces, or their foundations are weaker, or their history is too short."

"The three sects are the Black-White College, the Heavensplitter Sword Sect, and the Hundred Flowers Fairyland." Beishan Baiwei explained. "These three are far above all other sects in the Anchan Commandery. Powers like the Thousand Springs Sect or the Northriver Sect are much weaker."

"All three have great origins."

"The Heavensplitter Sword Sect is the only one of the three that specializes purely in the sword. It has many disciples. Their elites carve a bloody path to the top through countless battles. Each one is an extremely formidable fighter." Beishan Baiwei said. "I won't go into detail about them; you already know enough."

Ji Ning nodded. "Tell me about the other two."

"The Hundred Flowers Fairyland only recruits female disciples. Only women," Beishan Baiwei chuckled. "You, Ji Ning, might be a genius, but you can't get in. Their mountain gate is located in a separate pocket dimension opened by a great power, known as the Hundred Flowers Fairyland."

A separate pocket dimension? Ji Ning thought of his own aquatic palace, which also existed in another space.

"I don't plan to join the Heavensplitter Sword Sect, and I can't enter the Hundred Flowers Fairyland. What about the Black-White College?" Ji Ning pressed.

"The Black-White College? Let's hold off on that for now." Beishan Baiwei grinned slyly.

"Why not?" Ji Ning grew anxious.

"I have my reasons." Beishan Baiwei said. "Let me first tell you about the three major tribes among the eight powers: the Donghe Clan, the Dragonhunter Clan, and the Mulan Clan."

"The Dragonhunter Clan has an exclusive divine ability suited for archers," Beishan Baiwei said. "This clan frequently produces incredibly powerful archers. Top-tier archers are terrifying. They can use their divine sense to lock onto a target from a thousand li or more away, fire a single arrow, and severely wound or even kill from afar. If they can't kill, they can flee instantly."

Ji Ning's eyes lit up.

He himself possessed divine sense, with a range just over a hundred li.

And his divine ability, the Starseizing Hand, gave his hands a terrifying level of power. He could easily grip a bow with one hand and draw the string with the other.

"The Donghe Clan excels at controlling water. It's best not to fight Donghe experts in aquatic environments."

"The Mulan Clan is the most ancient of the three tribes, comparable to our Anchan Beishan clan. They've existed since the Primordial Fiendgod Era." Beishan Baiwei continued. "The Mulan Clan specializes in forging puppets. Many of the puppets in the Anchan Commandery come from them. After countless years, no one knows how many powerful puppets are hidden within the Mulan Clan. They are a force no one wants to provoke."

Ji Ning nodded.

The three sects and three tribes—each was extraordinary.

"As for the two great cults, they are the Heaven's Saint Cult and the Blood God Cult."

"The Heaven's Saint Cult acts with openness and righteousness, but also with domineering force." Beishan Baiwei said. "It has an extremely long history and is particularly mysterious."

"The Blood God Cult was founded sixty million years ago. It is vicious and mad. Its members can be described as insane. They frequently commit great sins, earning the pursuit and execution of the Yinglong Guard."

"The Yinglong Guard pursues them?" Ji Ning asked, puzzled.

Beishan Baiwei smiled. "Ji Ning, do you know about the concept of karmic merit in this world?"

"Yes." Ji Ning nodded.

Of course he knew. It was because of his own karmic merit that, back in the Netherworld Kingdom, he had been assigned to the Heavenly Realm. But due to the chaos in the Netherworld, he had entered the mortal world instead. If he hadn't reacted quickly back then, his soul would have scattered.

"Doing good earns karmic merit. Doing evil earns karmic sin." Beishan Baiwei said. "The greater your karmic merit, the more Heaven and Earth favor you, and the more luck you have. For those with heavy karmic sin, the Three Calamities and Nine Tribulations become far more severe, and their luck is depleted."

"Killing someone burdened with heavy karmic sin earns you great karmic merit." Beishan Baiwei smiled. "The Yinglong Guard is the army of the Grand Xia Dynasty. When they are ordered to kill those steeped in karmic sin, the Grand Xia Dynasty's karmic merit increases... and with it, the dynasty's luck grows stronger, its foundations more stable."

Ji Ning was astonished.

So the Yinglong Guard hunted down those with heavy karmic sin precisely for the sake of the Grand Xia Dynasty's luck? It seemed simple when explained.

"Those with karmic merit are surrounded by a clear aura. Those with karmic sin are shrouded in a turbid aura." Beishan Baiwei said. "I've heard legends that those with extremely high karmic merit can even emit a golden light, while those with boundless sin emanate a bloody light of sin. But you need to have opened the Heavenly Eye to see it."

Ji Ning understood.

He had opened the Heavenly Eye. When he swept his divine sense across himself, he could faintly sense a clear aura surrounding him. So that was karmic merit. But he had used his divine sense to sweep others a few times and never noticed a similar clear aura. Clearly, reaching this level of pure aura was no easy feat. Emitting a golden light was even rarer.

"How does one accumulate great karmic merit?" Ji Ning asked.

"I only know that doing good earns merit, and doing evil earns sin. I don't understand the deeper details." Beishan Baiwei said. "The balance of merit and sin is determined by Heaven. It's extremely complex. But cultivators must never casually slaughter mortals. Killing other cultivators is fine. But killing mortals—that will absolutely burden you with karmic sin. My father warned me about this."

Ji Ning was jolted awake. Killing mortals carried heavy sin?

"Thank you for the guidance, Brother Baiwei." Ji Ning said gratefully.

"You'll quickly learn these taboos once you join a sect," Beishan Baiwei said. "Killing mortals is a taboo. Killing one or two might be overlooked, but killing too many will cause trouble. The Bozi Shan you killed back then was carrying heavy karmic sin because he killed too many mortals, which is why the Yinglong Guard was hunting him."

...

After this discussion, Ji Ning realized something. "You've already told me about seven of the eight powers: the Heaven's Saint Cult, the Blood God Cult, the Donghe Clan, the Mulan Clan, the Dragonhunter Clan, the Heavensplitter Sword Sect, and the Hundred Flowers Fairyland. So what about the last one—the Black-White College? What's the deal with it?"

He was more concerned about sects.

He didn't want to join the Heavensplitter Sword Sect, and he couldn't enter the Hundred Flowers Fairyland. That left only the Black-White College.

"Because the Black-White College is the strongest of the eight!" Beishan Baiwei stared at Ji Ning.

"The strongest?" Ji Ning's curiosity was piqued.

"The other seven powers are all roughly equivalent—ancient, with deep foundations." Beishan Baiwei's eyes lit up. "But the Black-White College is the undisputed leader! It even once produced a Celestial Immortal."

"A Celestial Immortal?" Ji Ning's blood surged with excitement.

Heavens.

While many powers in the Anchan Commandery had Immortals, those were Earth Immortals or Loose Immortals. He had never heard of any power possessing a Celestial Immortal.

"Yes, a Celestial Immortal." Beishan Baiwei said. "At its peak, the Black-White College could rival our Anchan Beishan clan and even the Yinglong Guard."

"Countless eons have passed, and that ancient Celestial Immortal is long gone. But even now, the Black-White College remains the strongest of the eight powers." Beishan Baiwei grinned at Ji Ning. "And do you know? Of the three top sects, the Heavensplitter Sword Sect's mountain gate spans a hundred thousand li, and the Hundred Flowers Fairyland is in another dimension. But the Black-White College's mountain gate... is right here in Anchan City."

"Inside Anchan City?" Ji Ning couldn't believe it. "But Anchan City is just one city. How can a sect—especially one of this caliber—fit inside?"

"Because the Black-White College, from its Immortals down to its Zifu Disciples, has only a few hundred members," Beishan Baiwei laughed. "The entire college has over a hundred Zifu Disciples, over two hundred Wanxiang Adepts, over thirty Primal Daoists, and a few Immortals who are rarely seen. At least six Immortals, by reliable accounts."

Ji Ning blinked.

What?

Over a hundred Zifu Disciples?

Over two hundred Wanxiang Adepts?

There were fewer Zifu Disciples than Wanxiang Adepts? And the number of Primal Daoists was absurdly high. Even the Immortals numbered at least six—more than the Heavensplitter Sword Sect had!

"See now?" Beishan Baiwei looked at Ji Ning. "The Black-White College has an extremely small number of disciples. And it is incredibly difficult to enter. Even earlier, when I thought highly of you, I was only recommending the Heavensplitter Sword Sect. But now that you've reached the Domain of the Dao, you might be qualified to enter the Black-White College."

"At my level, I'm only 'qualified'?" Ji Ning was intrigued.

"The reputation of the Black-White College is known even to the Grand Xia's imperial capital," Beishan Baiwei said, staring at Ji Ning. "Every year, they take in at most three to five disciples. Some years, they take none at all. Without supreme talent, supreme comprehension, or an absolutely flawless foundation, you cannot enter. Those who do enter the Black-White College are all monstrous geniuses from the major tribes of the Anchan Commandery, and even from powerful forces outside the commandery who send their prodigies specifically to gain entry."