Chapter 190: Grand Return

All Novels || Martial God
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Above the Main Peak of Hengshan Mountain, lanterns were hung and decorations adorned every corner, creating a joyful and festive atmosphere.

The Main Peak Plaza, the largest platform on Hengshan Mountain, was originally designed by the first patriarch to accommodate only a little over a thousand people. However, after three millennia of continuous expansion and renovation, the Main Peak Plaza could now easily hold tens of thousands of people simultaneously.

At this moment, every person who arrived at the Main Peak wore a strange gleam in their eyes. Regardless of their true feelings, their faces expressed nothing but joy.

Today marked the grandest celebration for the Hengshan Mountain lineage in decades. Since Elder Yu Xichen stepped into the Innate realm sixty years ago, there hadn't been such a lively gathering for an entire Sixty-Year Cycle.

The elders who had attended the gathering sixty years prior couldn't help but sigh with nostalgia, pointing out details to their juniors and recounting their past experiences. Most of the younger generation, on the other hand, were restless, their gazes constantly drifting towards the entrance of the Main Peak Plaza, as if awaiting someone.

Hengshan Mountain boasts countless surrounding peaks, but only six are truly important: Main Peak, Spirit Medicine Peak, Wind-Fire Peak, Spirit Jade Peak, Thumb Peak, and Vast Mansion Peak. Over three millennia, these six peaks have produced countless Innate powerhouses, becoming the core pillars of the Hengshan Mountain lineage. Of course, many Innate powerhouses have also emerged from other smaller peaks, but sadly, those Innates from the smaller peaks were like fleeting blossoms, rarely forming a continuous presence. Therefore, after the death of Innate powerhouses from smaller peaks, their disciples and descendants would typically return to these six major peaks, awaiting a new round of ascensions.

Currently, there are over two thousand people living on Hengshan Mountain. Spending extended periods in such picturesque surroundings has indeed led to a significant increase in their martial arts cultivation compared to ordinary people in the outside world. Dozens of Acquired Stage powerhouses have even reached the Tenth Level of Inner Strength.

However, in this Sixty-Year Cycle, no new generation of powerhouses had emerged who had advanced to the Innate realm through their own efforts. This was a common sorrow in the hearts of everyone on Hengshan Mountain. But on this day, everyone knew that the outcast of Hengshan Mountain, He Wude, had not only found two Innate Inner Cores but had also brought his grandson, He Yiming, that exceedingly young Innate powerhouse, into the gates of Hengshan Mountain.

This was undoubtedly a powerful shot in the arm for all Hengshan Mountain disciples. Therefore, at this moment, all disciples who could make it had already arrived at the Main Peak Plaza. Aside from necessary personnel guarding each peak and some elderly, weak, and infirm who truly couldn't come, no one else was absent.

"Master, is Elder He really only seventeen years old?"

"Nonsense, do you not even believe Grand Martial Ancestor's words?"

"I believe you, but can one truly reach the Innate realm at seventeen?"

"That… it should be possible."

Similar conversations whispered from every corner of the plaza.

Although He Yiming had been on Hengshan Mountain for several months, he disliked moving around. Except for the Main Peak Book Collection Pavilion and the Spirit Medicine Peak's Pill Refining Room and Medicine Garden, he basically stayed indoors. In such circumstances, aside from the disciples of Spirit Medicine Peak, even most Main Peak disciples hadn't seen his true face, let alone disciples from other peaks. Thus, for this un-met but already renowned Elder He, they all held a strange anticipation.

Finally, a massive bell boomed from the mountaintop, and a solemn and reverent atmosphere instantly spread. The entire Main Peak Plaza fell silent, and even the faintest whispers completely vanished.

The giant bell on the mountaintop was not rung casually. It was only struck and the Ancestral Hall opened when Hengshan Mountain faced extremely significant events throughout its history. Today's bell striking was for the newly emerged Innate powerhouse.

Innate powerhouses are pivotal figures in any sect. Once such a powerhouse is born within a sect, no celebration, no matter how grand, is excessive.

Slowly, the large gate facing the plaza opened. Led by Yu Jinglei, the three Innate Elders followed closely behind. The four most important and powerful individuals of the Hengshan Mountain lineage walked out slowly from within the gate. Their gazes, like electricity, swept across the steps. Everyone below, whether white-haired elders or five-year-old children just beginning to learn Inner Energy, lowered their eyes, daring not to meet their gaze.

A moment later, Yu Jinglei slowly nodded. Yu Xichen immediately stepped forward and declared loudly, "Disciples of Main Peak, listen up, the Ancestral Hall is opening."

Everyone's gazes unified and turned towards the mountaintop, their eyes filled with admiration and respect. Everyone knew that only Innate Realm powerhouses could enter the Ancestral Hall and receive offerings from generations of disciples. They were the proudest figures in the three-thousand-year history of Hengshan Mountain. Everyone present hoped to advance to the Innate realm in their lifetime, so that after their death, they could gain the privilege of entering the Ancestral Hall. However, for most people, this wish was out of reach.

The heavy bronze doors slowly opened where everyone's eyes could see. No one knew who started it, but the moment the bronze doors fully opened, everyone except the four Innate Elders respectfully knelt on the ground.

Yu Jinglei personally lit the first incense stick for the ancestors, followed by the three Grand Elders, then the heads of each peak, and finally all Acquired Stage peak powerhouses whose Inner Energy had reached the Tenth Layer. Each person eligible to offer incense was a pillar of the Hengshan Mountain lineage. If the ancestors in the Ancestral Hall established the foundation of Hengshan Mountain, then these present individuals were the absolute pillars supporting this entire sky. They too received glances of envy and jealousy. Who knows how many people, after witnessing this scene, resolved to strive upwards, ultimately becoming Acquired Stage peak experts, or even Innate Realm powerhouses.

Every time the Ancestral Hall was opened, it was a rare experience for many disciples, and a powerful stimulus for them. Yu Jinglei and the other four elders observed this scene, exchanging glances, all extremely satisfied. These individuals secretly sighed, if the Ancestral Hall could be disturbed casually, they would truly wish to open it every ten or twenty years.

Every person who entered the Ancestral Hall to offer incense was extremely devout, their movements steady and flawless. Finally, when everyone had finished offering incense, Yu Xichen declared loudly, "Bow to the Founding Ancestors."

This time, even Yu Jinglei himself knelt down. In this solemn atmosphere, even those who were not sincere at first suppressed their thoughts and knelt with wholehearted devotion.

After a long time, when all the sacrificial rites were completed, everyone finally stood up. Yu Xichen's voice was loud and solemn: "Witnessed by generations of ancestors, He Wude, step forward."

"Yes…"

A similarly loud but seemingly aged voice came from the entrance of the plaza. Everyone turned their gaze there, and saw a white-haired, yet spirited old man had appeared at the plaza entrance.

He Wude's excited gaze swept across the plaza. Over forty years ago, it was here that he was expelled from the sect by Yu Jinglei. At that time, in the eyes of countless people in the plaza, there was nothing but contempt and disdain. He had dreamed of returning to the sect, and it was not without a desire to reclaim his pride. Now, the nearly two thousand people here looked at him with envy. To allow an outcast of the sect to re-enter the sacred ground of the Main Peak Plaza, and especially with the Ancestral Hall wide open…

He Wude took a deep breath, his eyes filled with pride. In this life, he had not lived in vain! Step by step, he walked towards the Ancestral Hall. The crowd in the plaza naturally parted, leaving a straight and wide path in the center for him, as if welcoming a triumphant general, granting him the most supreme welcome ceremony.

He Wude's face flushed unnaturally due to excessive excitement. He knew that only Innate Elders used to enjoy such etiquette. And the reason Yu Jinglei had specially arranged such a grand return ceremony for him was to compensate for the regret of his past expulsion. Of course, He Wude was even more aware that this super-standard treatment was entirely due to He Yiming. Without this Innate grandson, even if he had brought back two Innate Inner Cores, he would never have enjoyed such glory today.

Although He Wude wished to keep walking with immense satisfaction, the straight path from the plaza entrance to the Ancestral Hall always had an end. When he arrived before the Ancestral Hall, even though he felt it wasn't enough, he still stopped, knelt respectfully, and loudly declared, "He Wude, outcast of Hengshan Mountain, bows to the Lineage Ancestor."

Yu Xichen nodded slightly and proclaimed loudly, "Witnessed by generations of ancestors, although He Wude was expelled from Hengshan Mountain, he has been without complaint or regret for decades, always keeping Hengshan Mountain in his heart. This time, He Wude has rendered immense service to our Hengshan Mountain, bringing Elder He Yiming into our sect. In view of this, the elders of this sect have decided to restore He Wude's status as a Hengshan Mountain disciple." He suddenly turned and sternly questioned, "He Wude, are you willing to return to the sect?"

He Wude looked up, and the voice from his heart burst forth: "This disciple is willing." His voice boomed like thunder through the plaza, echoing endlessly in everyone's ears.

As if moved by the sincerity in that voice, for a moment, the entire plaza fell silent again, and everyone looking at He Wude felt different emotions. They asked themselves if they could be like He Wude if they were in his shoes. Slowly, most people's eyes contained varying degrees of admiration, because they knew that their own feelings for Hengshan Mountain probably couldn't compare to this devout white-haired old man's.

After prostrating three times and bowing nine times before the ancestral tablets in the Ancestral Hall, He Wude came before Medicine Daoist, knelt heavily, and said, "Master, your disciple has returned." When he first returned to Spirit Medicine Peak and met Medicine Daoist, he had said the same words. And at this moment, as he officially acknowledged his lineage under the witness of over a thousand people in the Hengshan Mountain sect, he still spoke those same words. However, the meaning represented by these two instances was completely different.

At this moment, a different feeling rose in the hearts of countless elders; they seemed to recall that scene from over forty years ago. At that time, no one had ever imagined that He Wude would not only be able to return to the sect but also do so with such glory.

Medicine Daoist pulled He Wude up, nodded with a satisfied smile, and said, "Wude, you may go." He Wude acknowledged and turned to the area where the Spirit Medicine Peak disciples were. Everyone, led by He Wujin, genuinely congratulated him. He Wujin himself shook his hand firmly. Four large hands clasped together, unspoken words contained within.

Yu Jinglei slowly took a step forward. Yu Xichen, understanding the situation, stepped back. He knew his task for the day was complete. Seeing Yu Jinglei step forward, the plaza naturally quieted down. They certainly understood the reason for the appearance of the most revered figure in Hengshan Mountain.

After He Wude's return, the atmosphere in the plaza had been subtly pushed to a climax. At this moment, everyone turned their eyes, gazing at Yu Jinglei on the steps, who in their hearts was like a deity. The old man, with a solemn expression, slowly said, "Please welcome He Yiming." His voice spread clearly, and everyone simultaneously looked towards the plaza entrance again. There, it was empty...

Just as everyone was wondering, a figure suddenly appeared. It was a young man. His face was not particularly striking, but his eyes shone like stars. Anyone who met his gaze felt a tremor in their heart and subconsciously lowered their eyes, no one daring to look him directly in the face.

However, apart from the limited few who had already seen He Yiming, the rest were filled with endless emotion. Although they had known before that He Yiming was only seventeen years old, hearing it and seeing it with their own eyes were two completely different concepts. When they saw He Yiming's age with their own eyes, the shock they felt was truly beyond words. Those who felt it most deeply were the Acquired Stage peak powerhouses whose Inner Energy had already reached the Tenth Layer; their gazes were far more complex than those of ordinary disciples.

He Yiming lifted his foot, and like He Wude, he stepped along the path through the middle of over a thousand people, arriving before the Ancestral Hall. The moment he arrived, he clearly sensed the immense pressure from the countless gazes behind him. Although He Wude was a Tenth Level of Inner Strength master, he was not an Innate powerhouse, so he couldn't feel how strong the pressure of so many people's gazes converging into one point was.

He Yiming, however, could clearly sense it, and he found that because the thousand-plus people here were all successful Acquired Stage cultivators, and dozens of them were at the Tenth Level of Inner Strength, the pressure they exerted on him was actually far greater than the pressure from thousands of onlookers during his battle with Cheng Fu in the past. However, as an Innate powerhouse, He Yiming merely straightened his back, and his True Qi circulated continuously, instantly making him seem unconcerned.

He suddenly recalled the New Year Competition with his peers in He Family Village back then. At that time, under the gaze of a mere few hundred house servants, he felt a little apprehensive. But now, amidst the gazes of thousands of Acquired Stage cultivators, he was calm and composed, as if nothing was amiss. In just a few short years, everything he had experienced had caused him to mature rapidly. At this moment, he even felt a sense of being in a different world…

"He Yiming." Yu Jinglei cleared his throat. He gazed into He Yiming's eyes and asked in a deep voice, "Are you willing to join our Hengshan Mountain lineage?"

He Yiming looked up as if waking from a dream. The bewilderment in his eyes gradually faded, replaced by a similar solemnity.

"Willing."

He clearly spoke these two words from his mouth. The sound of these two words was not very loud, but in the silent plaza where a falling needle could be heard, it was undoubtedly as loud as a clap of thunder. Even the four elders, who already knew the answer, let out a long sigh of relief at this moment. They exchanged glances, their eyes filled with an unspeakable joy and elation.

"Good," Yu Jinglei exclaimed loudly, then declared, "Lineage Ancestor above, from today onwards, He Yiming joins the Hengshan Mountain lineage and becomes our Hengshan Mountain's fourth Innate Elder." He turned and was the first to kneel, and beside him, Medicine Daoist and others followed suit.

He Yiming then "heard" that behind him, everyone else also knelt down again, even his Grandfather He Wude was no exception. Although no one instructed him, in such a situation, anyone who wasn't an idiot would know what to do. He Yiming immediately knelt down accordingly, becoming an ordinary member of the crowd.

The addition of an Innate powerhouse was clearly a much grander event than He Wude's return to the sect. Under Yu Jinglei's personal supervision, He Yiming not only performed the three bows and nine prostrations to the founding ancestors of Hengshan Mountain but also, accompanied by several elders, familiarized himself with all the ancestral tablets in the hall and learned about some of the deeds of these predecessors.

It was only after a full day that this grand ceremony came to an end. Finally, Yu Jinglei dismissed all the disciples from the plaza. The elders stood before the Ancestral Hall. Yu Jinglei solemnly pulled out a bronze plaque and said, "Elder He, this is the credential of an elder of our Hengshan Mountain lineage. Please accept it and keep it safe."

He Yiming received it with both hands, looking at the plaque engraved with misty mountains. He knew that this was the natural environment surrounding the Hengshan Mountain lineage. In particular, the Main Peak of Hengshan Mountain soared into the clouds, as if reaching directly to the sky. The moment his hand took the bronze plaque, He Yiming knew that he had officially become a member of Hengshan Mountain, and his destiny from then on would be firmly intertwined with this great sect until the end of his life.

All Novels || Martial God

Chapter 191: Inter-promoting Secret Method