Starting as a Grandmaster, all of my cultivation techniques are at max level.

The next morning, right after breakfast,

Xia Jin then went directly to the Imperial Study.

No communication is required.

He pushed the door open and entered, where he saw Xia Yu sitting behind a large dragon desk, with a mountain of memorials piled up in front of him.

"You've been much more diligent today!"

Upon hearing Xia Jin's voice, Xia Yu immediately put down his pen, stood up, and walked around the dragon desk to greet her: "Brother, what brings you here? Please have a seat. Someone, bring some tea!"

After the two sat down, a hint of doubt flashed in Xia Yu's eyes: "Brother, you've come so early today, there must be something important?"

"Of course, otherwise do you think I'd be so free to come looking for you?" Xia Jin took a sip of tea, giving the other person a disgruntled look. "I'm about to set off for the Qingyun Sect."

"Qingyun Sect!?" Xia Yu was suddenly taken aback, then a glint flashed in his eyes. "Big brother is preparing to take action against the Qingyun Sect?"

"Hmm!" Xia Jin stopped what she was doing and nodded. "Some thorns, if not removed, will always be a hidden danger. Since we've already fallen out with the Qingyun Sect, we might as well strike first!"

"Brother, just tell me what you want me to do!" Xia Yu said solemnly.

"This time, I alone am enough." Xia Jin's eyes blazed with intense confidence.

"But there's one more thing I need you to do! Once I destroy the Qingyun Sect, arrange for all its cultivation techniques, spiritual herbs, and other resources to be secretly transported back to Great Xia immediately."

"The foundation of the Great Xia Dynasty is ultimately too weak!"

"Alright! Don't worry, brother. As soon as the Qingyun Sect is destroyed, their resources will be transported back to Great Xia without anyone noticing!" Xia Yu clenched his hands and nodded solemnly.

"Alright, get things arranged as soon as possible." Xia Jin stood up, patted Xia Yu on the shoulder, and said, "It's time to start rewriting the history of Great Xia from today onwards!"

After saying that, Xia Jin turned and left the Imperial Study.

The wind is about to rise.

......

At the same time that Xia Jin left Great Xia...

In the main hall of the Qingyun Sect, the newly appointed sect leader, Ling Shanxiao, glanced at the six elders standing on the left and right below him, his face somewhat gloomy.

"What exactly happened?" Ling Shanxiao's voice carried a hint of anger. "Elder Zhao went to greet that Young Master Lin and also made a trip to Great Xia. Why hasn't he returned yet?"

Faced with Ling Shanxiao's question, the six elders below exchanged glances.

The Second Elder, sitting on the ebony chair, frowned. "Sect Master, it's already two days past the scheduled return date... Do you think... something might have happened?"

"Impossible! Within the Great Xia territory, there are fewer than five people who have reached the Grandmaster realm. Who could threaten Elder Zhao? Besides, even if they had ten times the courage, would anyone really dare to offend my Qingyun Sect?" The First Elder, sitting opposite the Second Elder, with his white hair and beard, snorted dismissively upon hearing this.

"That's right, the Grand Elder is correct!"

"Yes, Sect Master, I think perhaps that Young Master Lin just wanted to have some fun, which is why he took so long!"

The other elders smiled and echoed his sentiments after hearing this.

Just then, the Seventh Elder, who had been sitting at the very back and had not spoken until now, slowly raised his head.

He glanced at his left arm, which was now only covered by a sleeve, a hint of coldness in his eyes: "You... don't forget, in Great Xia, there is still that one person."

Upon hearing this, all the elders except Ling Shanxiao were taken aback at first, and then their expressions changed.

Four years ago, the scene of the Seventh Elder having his left arm severed by that person and dragging his heavily injured body back to the Qingyun Sect resurfaced in their minds.

The elder's face darkened, and he crushed the teacup in his hand with a "crack," completely unaware that tea had splashed all over him. A hint of apprehension flashed in his eyes.

"Sect Master, if it really is that 'King of the Underworld' who is behind this, Elder Zhao and that Young Master Lin are probably..." The Second Elder remained silent for a moment before looking up at Sect Master Ling Shanxiao.

"Enough! This is just speculation!" Ling Shanxiao suddenly raised his hand, interrupting him directly. "After my succession ceremony is successfully completed tomorrow, I will personally make a trip to Great Xia."

Ling Shanxiao slowly stood up, put his hands behind his back, and looked confident.

No one but himself knew that his cultivation level was not the half-step Free and Unfettered Heaven Realm as rumored outside, but rather the second level of the Free and Unfettered Heaven Realm!

In his eyes, let alone a Grandmaster at the ninth level, even if there were several more, they would be nothing more than stronger ants.

The Second Elder, adept at reading people, immediately stood up, bowed, and clasped his hands in a fist salute, his face beaming with smiles: "Sect Master's divine skills are unparalleled! If Sect Master personally takes action, no matter what kind of 'Emperor of the Underworld' or 'Emperor of the Underworld,' he will surely be captured with ease!"

Seeing this, the other elders echoed the sentiment, and the hall was filled with praise.

"Alright, let's put this matter aside for now and focus all our efforts on preparing for tomorrow's ceremony. Dismissed." Ling Shanxiao waved his hand, ending the meeting.

After returning to his room, he walked to a huge bookshelf on one side, his gaze falling on an inconspicuous black iron tiger figurine.

He reached out, grasped the tiger's head, and turned it three times clockwise, then one time counterclockwise.

"Click... Boom..."

With a slight mechanical sound, the wall next to the bookshelf slowly flipped inward, revealing an entrance just wide enough for one person to pass through.

Ling Shanxiao stepped inside without hesitation, his face cold.

After walking for about 15 minutes, the view suddenly opened up, revealing a spacious underground space about half the size of a square.

In the center stood more than a dozen enormous black iron crosses. Each cross was tightly bound to a person with black iron chains as thick as an infant's arm.

These people included both men and women, dressed in various ways, but all of them appeared listless and covered in wounds.

Hearing footsteps, they struggled to lift their heads, and when they saw that it was Ling Shanxiao, their eyes immediately blazed with deep-seated hatred.

"Ling Shanxiao! You traitor who betrayed your master and ancestors! You will die a horrible death!" An old man locked at the front shouted in a fierce voice.

"Traitor! Disaster for the sect! Our ancestor will never forgive you!" another middle-aged woman shouted.

"Bah! You rely on external forces to harm your fellow disciples, how dare you be the sect leader?!"

These people were from the other two factions that had previously competed with him for the position of sect leader.

Ling Shanxiao seemed oblivious to this, and slowly walked to the crosses, his gaze sweeping over the crowd.

"Go ahead and curse. The victor is king, the loser is villain; it has always been the way of things. Look at yourselves now, don't you look like lambs to the slaughter? And I am about to officially become the master of the Qingyun Sect, to be worshipped by ten thousand people."

He walked up to the old man who had first insulted him, looking down at him: "As for joining the Blood Fiend Sect? So what? Old man, you're too old-fashioned. Without power, what are sect traditions and righteous reputations anyway! The Blood Fiend Sect can give me power, allowing me to become the sect leader of the Azure Cloud Sect, and that's enough!"