Cultivation Starting from Full Talent

"""

The spring rain had yet to cease, drizzling endlessly.

One man and one deer departed Ji City in a streak of tunneling light, and before long, they arrived at another city—Yunxi City.

Demon Tai Sui had wreaked havoc in Ji City, nearly slaughtering its entire population. After Ning Daoran shielded the members of Su Family's Martial Arts Hall and helped them escape, it seemed Su Chuanping and Su Mei, the father-and-daughter duo, had later settled down in Yunxi City.

Yet now, Ning Daoran had no idea how Old Su and Su Mei were faring.

Ning Daoran furrowed his brows. Old Su was purely a martial artist and had likely passed away many years ago, while Su Mei, a dual cultivator of magic and body, would need to have at least reached the Golden Core Stage by now if she were still alive—but even then, odds weren't promising.

"Old Lu."

Dismissing such gloomy thoughts, he smiled and said, "Let's enter the city, find the best tavern, and have ourselves a feast. What do you say?"

"Awoo! Awoo! Awoo~~"

Big Stupid Deer grew visibly excited, wagging its tail so vigorously that it became a blur. It had been ages since it had gone out to dine with its big brother and sorely missed the feeling!

Yunxi City, Long Street.

Both Ning Daoran and Big Stupid Deer suppressed their aura to the Mid-stage Foundation Establishment Realm. This way, they wouldn't attract undue trouble; otherwise, a mere release of their Nascent Soul aura would likely draw out the local City Lord, Martial Immortals, or Great Cultivators in droves.

"Little brother!"

Ning Daoran approached a porcelain vendor's stall and asked, "What's the best tavern on this street?"

"Of course, it's the Apricot Blossom Red Grand Hotel!" The young vendor answered without hesitation.

"Is that so?"

Ning Daoran's suspicion rose—this answer had come too swiftly, without the slightest pause for thought.

"Certainly!"

The vendor declared emphatically, "You must be an outsider, sir. If you go to this tavern, you won't regret it!"

"Really?"

Still skeptical, Ning Daoran narrowed his eyes and silently extended a strand of mana to perform a shallow soul search on the vendor.

As suspected—falsehood!

The vendor was working as a shill for Apricot Blossom Red Hotel, whose proprietress happened to be his own elder sister. As for the tavern's quality? Absolutely abysmal—the food was terrible, the service dreadful, and the staff had a habit of tampering with customers' meals.

Sure enough, traversing the Jianghu meant never trusting people lightly!

This content was first released on MV_LEMPYR.

However, through his search, Ning Daoran discerned the true best tavern on this street—a different place called Apricot Blossom Pavilion, which differed from the shill's recommendation by just one word.

With a flick of his sleeve, he erased the memory of the soul search from the vendor's mind.

"Eh?"

The vendor blinked in confusion. "Sir, what were you asking just now?"

"Nothing much—I was just complimenting you on how sharp you look. You're destined for great things!"

"Oh my, sir, you have such keen eyes! I've got excellent porcelain here; care to take a look?"

Before he could finish, Ning Daoran had already led Big Stupid Deer away.

...

Apricot Blossom Pavilion.

Ning Daoran glanced at the menu. This tavern catered to the mundane world and didn't offer spiritual wine, fruits, or other high-end ingredients. But that was fine, as Ning Daoran didn't mind dining on humble staples.

He ordered a full table's worth of dishes along with a jug of the locally renowned Apricot Blossom Wine.

"Anything else, sir?"

"Actually, I'd like to inquire about something."

Ning Daoran said, "Little waiter, long ago I had some friends who established Su Family's Martial Arts Hall here in Yunxi City. Do you happen to know if it still exists?"

"Su Family's Martial Arts Hall?"

The waiter scratched his head and pondered for a moment. Then, he suddenly slapped his thigh and exclaimed, "Yunxi City is a martial-oriented place, and many martial halls have been established here. Su Family's Martial Arts Hall, however, is from ages ago—probably from my grandfather's time."

He frowned and asked, "Sir, how do you know the people from Su Family's Martial Arts Hall? If anyone from that hall were still alive, they'd definitely be ancient by now…"

Suddenly, his eyes widened in astonishment. "Sir, don't tell me you—?"

"Indeed."

Ning Daoran replied with a faint smile. "I am a cultivator."

"No wonder…"

The waiter remarked, "Sir, you may not know this, but Su Family's Martial Arts Hall was quite significant back then. Later, it expanded so much that it outgrew the city, and they moved to establish a sect in the mountains. They named it Yunxi Martial Sect, which became Yunxi City's premier martial arts sect. Unfortunately…"

"Unfortunately what?" Ning Daoran asked, surprised.

"Unfortunately, not long ago, Yunxi Martial Sect somehow provoked another sect. It's said that the sect's ancestor was an incredible cultivator with boundless power, reputed for killing countless people. He was known as an Old Immortal, and Yunxi Martial Sect and his disciples have been embroiled in conflicts ever since. Just yesterday, news came in that Yunxi Martial Sect's mountain gate had been destroyed. The conflict is likely still ongoing—I don't know if Yunxi Martial Sect can survive this. If they don't, Yunxi City's number one sect will be gone…"

The waiter showed little emotion, clearly indifferent to the life-and-death struggles of martial or cultivation sects—whether they lived or perished had nothing to do with him.

"Still fighting?"

Ning Daoran frowned and asked, "Little waiter, could you point out Yunxi Martial Sect's location?"

"It's probably over there…"

He raised an arm and pointed. "Just follow that direction out of the city for about fifty miles, and you'll see a tall mountain. Yunxi Martial Sect is located on that mountain."

"I see. Thank you!"

From his storage bag, Ning Daoran fetched a silver ingot worth ten taels, placing it on the table. "Keep the change."

"Huh?"

The waiter blinked in surprise. "Sir, won't you finish your meal before leaving?"

"No need to worry—I'll pack it up."

With a flick of his sleeve, Ning Daoran instantly stored the tableware, chairs, dishes, and wine into his Spirit Garden Cave Heaven. In a commanding tone, he said, "Old Lu, let's head to Yunxi Martial Sect!"

"Awoo~~~"

In the next moment, the man and deer soared into the sky, shedding any suppression of their aura. They shot forward as two streaks of blood-red tunneling light toward Yunxi Martial Sect!

"What!?"

Downstairs, a Golden Core Early Stage old cultivator suddenly froze mid-sip, dropping his wine cup and spilling fine liquor everywhere. He had disguised his aura to Early Stage Qi Refinement, traveling incognito in this backwater town, confident that he was a dragon stranded in shallow waters. Yet he hadn't anticipated the presence of even higher-realm cultivators here!

"That's… Late-stage Nascent Soul?!"

He stared, dumbfounded, out the window at the two streaks of swiftly vanishing tunneling light.

One was a Late-stage Nascent Soul cultivator, and the other a Mid-stage Nascent Soul spiritual beast. In this insignificant Yunxi City, how could such titans of the cultivation world possibly appear?

...

Night descended.

The spring rain continued to fall in fine mist, yet it posed no hindrance to the two streaks of tunneling light. Before long, a towering mountain loomed into view.

Releasing his Nascent Soul Divine Sense, Ning Daoran scanned the area thoroughly. As expected, the mountain gate was destroyed—Yunxi Martial Sect's stone archway had been shattered into two pieces, barely recognizable, and beneath it lay the corpses of two martial artists. Presumably, these were sect disciples.

Combat still trickled on within the mountain.

Ning Daoran quickly located several distinct auras through his Divine Sense. Among them, one Late-stage Baodan Martial Artist's aura was chaotic, seemingly besieged by more than ten Golden Core cultivators—including two at Golden Core Late Stage!

What a surprise: even this modest Yunxi City bore witness to such intense battles. The cultivation world truly never knew peace.

"There she is, Old Lu. Let's go!"

Ning Daoran accelerated his tunneling light, streaking decisively toward his target.

The Late-stage Baodan aura felt eerily familiar. If his hunch was correct, it was highly likely the aura belonged to Su Chuanping's daughter—Su Mei. After all these years, she'd unexpectedly advanced to the Late-stage Baodan Realm!

Accompanied by the sound of air rupturing, Ning Daoran abruptly materialized above a grand hall now reduced to rubble. Below him sprawled several Yunxi Martial Sect disciples, bloodied and writhing in pain.

"Senior…"

One disciple, upon spotting Ning Daoran, gasped, "Save our ancestor… Save… Save the ancestor…"

"Your ancestor—is it Su Mei?" Ning Daoran asked indifferently.

"Precisely!"

"Alright then."

With a flick of his sleeve, Ning Daoran unleashed Eternal Green Power, bathing the wounded in its healing aura. Whereas their deaths had seemed imminent moments earlier, they now had a chance to survive.

At the mountain's summit, a fierce battle raged on.

A woman clad in blue was utilizing the Dragon Demon Heart Scripture to fend off more than ten Golden Core cultivators.

She was in dire straits, her arms repeatedly swinging, flinging spiritual artifacts and magical treasures, while the Dragon Demon Power forming her Gang Qi dissipated over and over—yet she held her ground before the Ancestor Hall, stubbornly defending against the onslaught.

The scene reminded Ning Daoran of a moment from an American blockbuster: the Hulk being bombarded by concentrated firepower. But Su Mei's plight was even more desperate—bloodied and utterly battered.

Were it not for the resilience of her martial artist physique and her indomitable martial spirit, she'd have perished long ago under the assault of so many Golden Core cultivators!

As matters stood, had Ning Daoran delayed even ten breaths longer, Su Mei's fate would have been sealed.

How wondrous the twists of destiny—after so many years apart, he encountered her at the nadir of her struggles!

"Boom~~~"

A peerlessly powerful wave of blood-red energy exploded atop the summit. Ning Daoran, clad in elegant robes, descended like a divine weapon from the heavens, one hand clasped behind his back, exuding a profoundly immortal radiance.

The pressure of his aura, unmistakably Late-stage Nascent Soul, was unrelenting!

Even ordinary cultivators at Late-stage Nascent Soul might struggle against it, let alone the Golden Core cultivators assaulting Su Mei.

Instantly, all except Su Mei, whom Ning Daoran deliberately bypassed, spat blood and paled, completely immobilized under the crushing weight of his spiritual pressure!

"Senior!"

Among them, a Golden Core Late Stage elderly man pleaded, "We are members of the Soul Devouring Sect… I beg Senior to show mercy!"

"Soul-devouring Demon's disciples?" Ning Daoran asked.

"I-Indeed…"

"Very well."

Ning Daoran smiled faintly. "I've wanted to eliminate the Soul-devouring Demon for years. This is an opportune moment—consider it fate aligning in my favor."

"What?!"

The Golden Core Late Stage elder paled further in shock. "Senior, you—You're—You're from the Battle of Descent, the Ning—"

"No need for words. Accept your death."

Ning Daoran's gaze remained indifferent.

...

"Se… Senior…"

Behind him stood Su Mei, battered and clinging to her composure. She bit her crimson lips, staring at the figure before her—the figure that had appeared countless times in her dreams. And yet, she had never imagined it would manifest in reality.

What's more, it had done so at a moment when she was in dire need.

At this instant, Ning Daoran turned around, still bearing the handsome, youthful appearance he'd maintained for over three centuries. Smiling softly, he said:

"Miss Su, it's been a long time."

"""