Li Ling unceremoniously sat down without hesitation, his expression remaining that of mild amusement, as if he were a spectator watching a group of clowns play out an act. This demeanor naturally made the group of Hall Masters feel extremely unhappy, but they understood that their goals took precedence over their pride... for now.

Seeing that they could hold it in, Li Ling became somewhat bored. Despite his seeming disregard for authority, he still cupped his fist in a relatively respectful salute, greeting the group who sat before him in a bland tone.

"Greetings, esteemed Hall Masters. To what does a great talent like myself owe the honor of being summoned here today?"

There was not a hint of humility or respect in his tone, as if he were talking to his own peers. However, his words were stable enough to pass as a standard greeting, so even though Hu Wulei bared his fangs with an irritated growl, the six Hall Masters still said nothing outright.

"Path Lord Li, you have done quite well for yourself ever since joining our hall slightly over a week ago. From merely the third level of Foundation Establishment in qi cultivation, and at the peak of Mortal Flesh in body cultivation, you have climbed to the peak of both realms in such a short time." Tang Huo revealed casually, disrupting the flow of the gathering.

The faces of everyone in the room changed abruptly, as they couldn't believe what they were hearing. After all, even if they were Hall Masters with strong executive power over the Six Paths Halls, that only affected their specific halls in question.

The rest of the details they had to explore or discover on their own, using their various information networks to dig out the truth about this young man. Most of their information came from his actions during this War of Annihilation, not what came before.

All they knew was that Tang Huo had meted out a severe merit ban on him for vaguely stated reasons, but now knowing about his monstrous growth over a short period made them look at him with a hint of seriousness.

A demonic sect would never judge for cultivation speed, but this was something else. Indeed, many of them were like the young Cao Xian, able to reach the third realm before they were even thirty years old, and the rest of their lifespans up until now had been spent as Hall Masters guiding the next generation forward.

But there should be some common ground in terms of speed, right? Why did it feel like they were riding the waves of a powerful tsunami while this guy was basically riding a rocket, flying over their heads?

If there had been a strong desire to possess him before, it had now tripled in the eyes of all the remaining Hall Masters apart from Tang Huo, who smiled slightly after revealing this. Yet in response, Li Ling did not even look at him, firmly crossing his hands over his chest as he took charge.

"Indeed, Hall Master Tang is correct. My talent and affinity with the Blood Asura Descent are quite unparalleled. I believe Hall Master once called me a… 'Blood Child'? I feel such a term is even inferior to represent my ability and potential."

"Such confidence! I like it, hahaha!" Hu Wulei laughed uproariously with his arms folded, his two long canines flashing under the light, giving off a sense of primal threat.

"Hmph, confidence or arrogance? Fast cultivation speed at the lower levels is nothing. Anyone with resources or treasures could achieve such speeds, regardless of righteous or demonic." Shen Taixu retorted with a sneer, clearly miffed by Li Ling's rampant words.

"Does it matter? What this young man has achieved is a feat quite rare on the continent, so he is entitled to feel the way he does." Gu Mugui argued with a soft smile.

"Indeed, a talent not seen in our halls for quite some time. As such, we—as the Hall Masters tasked with oversight and supervision by the sect—must utilize our wisdom and foresight to plan the most efficient path of growth for Path Lord Li." Cao Tian added with a charming smile towards Li Ling, filled with matronly benevolence.

Based on her look alone, one would think she was suggesting something beneficial to Li Ling, and her current words seemed to imply as much. Despite the harsh words the system scan had used to reveal her intentions, when it came to implementing them, she used a soft and gentle approach.

However, Li Ling was not going to make it easy for them. Right now, they were all on the same side and could lay out their goals together to suppress him, so he had to subtly turn their ambitions against each other, making it a competition to see who could win his favor.

With that in mind, Li Ling threw his first wrench. "Guidance? I need no such thing from any of you. If you give me 10,000 merit points right now without the stupid merit ban on top, I can acquire the third realm chapter of the Blood Asura Descent as well as a decent Core Formation qi cultivation technique. Within another seven days, I can reach the peak of both realms and be equal to you all, so what right do you have to guide me?"

This caused Cao Tian's calm smile to fade significantly, and the others to show moved expressions, while Tang Huo remained indifferent. The True Human Hall Master struggled to keep her smile from breaking as she replied softly.

"Path Lord Li, you can't say it like that. Your surging talent is undeniable, far superior to my own. However, after being a Hall Master of a premier sect like the Six Paths Demon Sect for over a hundred years, there are experiences I've learned and secrets I know about cultivation that you will not find anywhere."

Cao Tian gently passed a hand through her hair. "All I want is for you to take advantage of that experience to turn it into your advantage, allowing you to maintain this speed and indefatigability for the higher realms of cultivation that come later on."

Li Ling raised an eyebrow, not too surprised that the leader of the hall handling logistics and administration was so eloquent with political speech. What did surprise him, though, was that none of the others directly supported her on the spot, something she herself quickly noticed.

"Or do my fellow Hall Masters have different ideas?" Cao Tian asked with a thin smile.

"Mmm, I feel that it is a breach of etiquette to give such favorability to one disciple. There have been many with such talents in the history of our sect, and while they were eventually singled out for training, that was done at the middle layer, with the elders taking them in as personal disciples." Gu Mugui stated coldly with a shrug.

"Indeed! Even if he is the reincarnation of the Six Paths Demon Venerable, he must go through the normal cultivation process in order to realize his own dao!" Hu Wulei bellowed with vigor.

"Hmph, even his own Hall Master directly placed a ban on his growth speed to help cultivate him, earning the ungrateful enmity of this brat. Who are you to override that and declare that he must be babied?" Shen Taixu sneered once again, directly poking the elephant in the room without a care for consequences.

Tang Huo's indifferent expression finally cracked slightly and showed a flash of irritation, but it became neutral just as quickly. Cao Tian's expression completely fell and became gloomy, looking as if she would have liked to tear the flesh of her colleagues apart if given the chance.

Meanwhile, Yan Moqing, who had yet to speak so far, decided to throw her hat into the ring.

"On the topic of the merit ban, as the one in charge of disciplinary matters across the entire sect and our section of Tianmo Empire, I find it very unnecessary to issue such a stern punishment to such a talented disciple." She said quite casually, but it was as if her words set off a bomb that no one knew was hidden.

All heads snapped in her direction, minus Li Ling, who was watching the show with a smarmy grin, each of the Hall Masters wearing looks of incredulity.

It was a fact that the disciplinary head in any faction, institution, or community would be universally disliked by its members, regardless of whether the members were criminals or law-abiding people.

Yan Moqing was no different in this regard, disliked by all disciples of the Six Paths Halls and especially by her fellow Hall Masters, as she also had some jurisdiction over them. She was well known for her strictness, impartiality, and cold-heartedness, so to hear her speak up for someone was definitely a shocking moment for all who did not know her true intentions.

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