Chapter 137: Mind Your Own Ways

All around, everyone fell into a fearful silence. No one had expected the Overlord Master Sikong Yang, the supreme ruler of the entire world, to be so furious! In their eyes, even if a genius destroyed his own prospects, it was still a trivial matter for the Xia Clan, because there were still many other geniuses! Master Sikong Yang had no reason to lose his composure like this.

“Starting today, I will often remain in the Chiyun Mountain World,” Master Sikong Yang angrily declared. “I will set a new cultivation path for you! You must follow the path I establish and cultivate diligently. Can you do that?”

“Hmm?” Palace Master Gong Yu looked at Sikong Yang in surprise.

Du Rourou, Wen Yong’an, Situ Hong, Zhuo Yi, and others were equally astonished.

Dongbo Xueying had already destroyed his own promising path of ‘Water and Fire True Meaning,’ yet Master Sikong Yang still hadn’t given up on him?

Dongbo Xueying felt a warmth in his heart.

“Master,” Dongbo Xueying respectfully said, “I can’t do it!”

“You, you…” At this moment, Sikong Yang was furious and deeply disappointed!

Dongbo Xueying’s self-destruction of his future had already become a fact. However, for the past ten years, Master Sikong Yang had always favored Dongbo Xueying greatly. He also believed that although Dongbo had taken a wrong turn, he was only thirty-nine years old! His combat strength ranked just below Du Rourou, who had mastered the mystery of time, among the nine geniuses. How extraordinary was such talent?

Even if he had to start over and choose a new path, advancing step by step, he believed Dongbo Xueying still had the potential to rise again!

But…

Dongbo Xueying had actually refused!

“You can’t do it?” Sikong Yang stared at Dongbo Xueying.

“Because of my passionate love for this path of transcendence, I have always been filled with fighting spirit! But if I must follow a set cultivation path, I must explore and advance only within that direction! Under such constraints, I can’t endure cultivating for thousands of years. My cultivation speed would likely drop drastically,” Dongbo Xueying shook his head.

“Childish!”

“Nonsense!”

“Do you think cultivation is a game? Without a clear cultivation path, you want to cultivate however you please? Do you really think you can become a Demigod?” Sikong Yang shook his head. What was his status? Most transcendents, without proper cultivation guidance, ended up as ordinary people! But some transcendents set clear cultivation paths for themselves, advancing steadily along those paths, growing stronger with each step. After a few hundred years, they had a real chance of reaching the Saint level!

Among the Saint-level transcendents, over ninety percent were like this.

And even among Demigods, most were like this.

Those who cultivated randomly and still became Demigods or even Gods were ultimately only a rare few!

…

Soon, Wen Yong’an and Du Rourou also finished their sparring matches, and Master Sikong Yang offered them some guidance, though his expression remained grim throughout.

“Based on this sparring session, I will re-establish the rankings,” Master Sikong Yang announced casually.

Du Rourou and Wen Yong’an remained first and second. Wu Cang third, Zhuo Yi fourth, Situ Hong fifth, Zhang Peng sixth, Yu Feng seventh, Puyang Bo eighth, and Dongbo Xueying ninth!

He was directly placed at the bottom of the list!

“Dongbo Xueying.”

Master Sikong Yang turned to Dongbo Xueying, “You’re wasting the resources of our Xia Clan like this! Cultivating so recklessly, you should reflect on yourself!”

With those words, Master Sikong Yang instantly stepped forward and vanished into the sky.

Master Gong Yu said nothing more, only shaking his head with a sigh before departing.

Only the nine of them remained on the open ground.

“Dongbo Xueying,” Situ Hong, the eldest among them, shook his head, a hint of mockery on his face. “Ten years ago, all those rare treasures you consumed were truly wasted! I truly feel sorrow for our Xia Clan.”

Situ Hong had never liked Dongbo Xueying.

In the past, he had been the fastest cultivator of Spatial Mysteries and was once favored by Master Sikong Yang. But later, he became stuck at the second stage of the Spatial Mysteries’ Ten Thousand Things Realm and couldn’t break through, causing his ranking to gradually drop. During these ten years, Dongbo Xueying had been the most dazzling among them. Unlike the others, whose chances of becoming Demigods were extremely low, Dongbo Xueying had previously been considered nearly certain to become a Demigod!

A Demigod? Although Situ Hong felt jealousy and resentment, he also harbored some desire to flatter Dongbo Xueying and dared not provoke him.

What truly upset him, in fact, was Senior Apprentice Sister Zhuo Yi. Zhuo Yi possessed the Yin Body, and Situ Hong had pursued her for a long time. But clearly, Zhuo Yi looked down on him! However—Zhuo Yi had shown particular closeness to Dongbo Xueying, being perhaps the closest to him! If Dongbo Xueying had pursued her, Zhuo Yi might very likely have fallen into his arms.

Fortunately, Dongbo Xueying was as wooden as a log, always keeping his distance from Senior Apprentice Sister Zhuo Yi.

Even so…

Situ Hong had always been jealous, though he had forced it down.

Now Dongbo Xueying had actually destroyed his own future! Such a bright future was ruined, and Situ Hong was overjoyed and excited. The suppressed jealousy and dissatisfaction naturally erupted, and he no longer bothered to hide it, openly sneering and mocking.

“Senior Brother Situ Hong, you can’t say it like that. Younger Brother Xueying originally had a bright future,” Wen Yong’an said. “He just took a wrong turn.”

“Bright future? He has no future at all! Haven’t you heard? He’s always cultivated recklessly, so recklessly that he’s destined to have no real prospects!” Situ Hong sneered and glanced at Dongbo Xueying. “He’s actually my younger brother in the sect. What a disgrace to me.”

“Enough, Senior Brother Situ Hong,” Du Rourou said.

Only then did Situ Hong hold back, though he still snickered, looking sideways at Dongbo Xueying, not even bothering to look him in the eye directly.

“Junior Brother Xueying, how could you act so recklessly? Sigh,” Du Rourou was also disappointed.

“Little Brother,” Puyang Bo put his arm around Dongbo Xueying and laughed, “I’ve always been last for years. I never thought I’d finally be second to last. Haha.”

“I’m third to last,” Yu Feng muttered.

“I’m fourth to last,” Zhang Peng smiled.

Dongbo Xueying silently watched.

Only in times of hardship would people’s true faces be revealed. Before, when he was considered nearly certain to become a Demigod without incident, everyone had been extremely kind to him.

But now?

Puyang Bo, Yu Feng, and Zhang Peng remained sincere toward him, and Dongbo Xueying could feel it. Senior Apprentice Sister Du Rourou was clearly disappointed. Wen Yong’an also kept some distance from him. Wu Cang stood in a corner, alone and silent.

Situ Hong was the most obvious, his mockery and disdain fully unhidden.

And the once affectionate ‘Senior Apprentice Sister Zhuo Yi’ stood at a distance, gently shaking her head, not even bothering to look at Dongbo Xueying anymore. Her previous closeness to Dongbo Xueying had only been because she believed he could become a Demigod. An ordinary transcendentalist? She looked down on him! There were plenty of powerful transcendents pursuing her.

“I’m going back first,” Dongbo Xueying said to Yu Feng and the others nearby. After ten years together, they had long become good friends.

“Let’s go drinking tonight?” Puyang Bo quickly suggested.

“No.”

Dongbo Xueying immediately transformed into a streak of light and flew into the distance.

“If I were you, I’d never dare to come back to the Chiyun Mountain World again,” Situ Hong deliberately shouted loudly, his voice carrying spatial ripples that reached Dongbo Xueying’s ears.

Flying high in the sky, Dongbo Xueying turned his head and coldly glanced at Situ Hong behind him, then ignored him and flew further away.

…

In the city of Xia, at Dongbo Xueying’s estate.

Dongbo Xueying, dressed in black, descended from the sky and flew into the estate. It was rare for him not to enter through the main gate.

“Master,” Lady Butler Xu Qin and several maids respectfully bowed. They were only mortals, and to them, Dongbo Xueying was an exalted transcendental being whom they dared not offend in the slightest. They could tell that Dongbo Xueying was in a bad mood.

They didn’t know…

Just moments ago, their master Dongbo Xueying had been harshly scolded by one of the top Demigods and had suffered a significant drop in status!

“I want some peace and quiet. Don’t disturb me,” Dongbo Xueying instructed and walked to a reclining chair in the backyard garden, lying down casually. He took a sip from a bottle of Oceanic Realm Stone Spirit Liquor, feeling his entire body relax and his mind become clearer. He began to carefully sort through and contemplate his thoughts.