The drumbeats resounding throughout the city were imbued with an ancient, weighty aura.

Even Lv Bai, hearing these drumbeats, felt an irresistible itch, longing to fight.

Leading the disciples of the Cyan Hope Sect out of the venue, they followed the guidance of the purple clouds in the sky towards the city center.

Looking at the sky, one could see some high-profile Immortal Sect disciples choosing to fly directly on rainbows.

After all, among the Cyan Hope Sect disciples, aside from Lv Bai, everyone was at the Qi Cultivation Stage, unable to fly.

Considering it wasn’t quite right to just leave Fatty Feng and the others behind, Lv Bai ultimately decided to honestly walk with them.

After all, the distance wasn’t far.

...

The Immortal Sects within Xuan Province numbered in the hundreds, big and small.

No matter the strength of the sect, it’s not difficult to find some disciples under the age of thirty to put together a team.

Each sect almost always sent over a dozen disciples.

With so many disciples gathered, the numbers were considerable.

By the time Lv Bai arrived with the Cyan Hope Sect disciples, the plaza at the city center was already crowded with cultivators.

Between each team, boundaries were clearly distinct; those with good private relations would only communicate from a distance.

Above the plaza, a high platform had been set with hundreds of seats for elders and distinguished guests from the various Immortal Sects.

"Hehe, your Vine Tower disciples look quite spirited."

"Not at all, still not as good as your Celestial Secret Sect."

"Tight and glowing with gold, could it be that the Golden Scale Evil Suppression Technique has reached Great Success? It seems this round, once again, your Golden Scale Sacred Land’s Saint Heir will be dominating."

The upper echelons of the Immortal Sects on the high platform casually chatted, seemingly harmonious.

But, with a bit of attention, one could notice the underlying barbs in their words.

"Wang Du Gui? So this time you’re leading the team."

An old man with no white whiskers noticed Lv Bai’s approaching group and exclaimed in surprise as if he’d just spotted Elder Wang: "I heard your Cyan Hope Sect produced a genius this year?"

Elder Wang laughed heartily: "Just good fortune, still needs time to settle."

"Humph," came a cold snort.

The bronze-skinned, shirtless strongman heard this and suddenly let out a cold snort.

He was the Vice Sect Leader of the Baptism by Fire Sect.

Lv Bai rose above them, so naturally, he wouldn’t show a friendly face.

The old man with no white whiskers chuckled, playing moderator: "We’re all here for the Initial Dao Assembly, let’s not ruin the mood."

...

Below the plaza.

Due to yesterday’s events spreading throughout Purple Cloud City, even if Lv Bai wasn’t particularly renowned, no one would stand out to challenge him at the moment.

Along the way, as they walked with the Cyan Hope Sect disciples, disciples from allied Immortal Sects greeted them, to which Lv Bai responded, not arrogantly, but one by one.

"Is this the Lv Bai who defeated Theo Flame? Heard it only took him one move."

"Indeed, although the Baptism by Fire Sect is not impressive, Theo Flame counts as a master among the younger generation of Xuan Province. For him to defeat Theo Flame with one move is no small feat."

A young man sat cross-legged on the ground, a box of swords placed on his knees.

His complexion was pale, but most attention-catching were his eyes, sharp as swords, incredibly piercing, just meeting them made others’ eyes ache.

Presently, he was watching Lv Bai leading at the front of the Cyan Hope Sect disciples with great interest.

Being the sword-carrying disciple of this Sword Pavilion generation, the young drinker faithfully recounted the incidents from the tavern: "Golden Core Stage under thirty? Considering his Cyan Hope Sect background, it truly isn’t easy."

The Golden Scale Saint Heir sat at the forefront of the crowd, his demeanor heroic, his skin exposed to the air covered in golden points, brilliant upon closer inspection like sunlight.

Upon noticing Lv Bai, his eyes flashed with divine light, saying: "Indeed, worthy of following me."

Though he said such, he didn’t rush to act.

Because the Initial Dao Assembly had begun.

After a few elders of Purple Cloud Manor confirmed everyone was present, they wasted no time, urging the array into action.

The runes inscribed upon the ground of the plaza glowed with dazzling purple light.

As the teleportation array was pushed to its extreme, over a thousand Immortal Sect disciples gathered on the plaza were all teleported to Purple Cloud Mountain behind Purple Cloud City.

To ensure the Initial Dao Assembly proceeded, Purple Cloud Mountain had set prohibitions three months prior, forbidding any ingress or egress.

With Great Powers from each sect overseeing, cheating was essentially eliminated.

...

The precise teleportation array randomly transported over a thousand Immortal Sect disciples variously throughout Purple Cloud Mountain.

Every Initial Dao Assembly’s procedure is mostly the same; Lv Bai had made himself familiar beforehand.

He had foreseen this, and after a brief dizziness, he quickly recovered.

Promptly leaping onto a nearby towering giant tree, he surveyed his surroundings to roughly ascertain his current location.

The assembly’s first test had rules similar to a battle royale; basically, the longer one survives, the better.

With over a thousand Immortal Sect disciples in attendance, naturally eliminating most of the weaklings was necessary first.

Otherwise, having a bunch of Divinity Transformation Stage elders watch two Qi Cultivation Stage disciples battle all day would only waste time, leaving unjudged the true capabilities of each sect’s young generation.

Of course, Lv Bai’s willingness to join the Initial Dao Assembly was partly due to finding Death Fighters with greater ease.

Additionally, he had certain thoughts about the assembly’s rewards.

From what he understands, the Initial Dao Assembly is intricately tied to mysterious luck.

Cultivation requires more than just talent; luck is needed too.

Luck, at times, can be influenced by human effort, hence the saying that man can conquer heaven.

The Initial Dao Assembly is such a chance to change destiny and fortune.

The principle is simple, or perhaps brutal.

By gathering the elite of the young generation of Xuan Province, essentially congregating the next generation’s fortune of Xuan Province.

As long as one defeats others, even without knowing the specific workings of the Heavenly Dao, one’s innate fortune will still improve.

This means, even if one’s talent isn’t enough, as long as one is strong enough, never defeated, achieving unrivaled standing among peers.

After the Initial Dao Assembly, the fortune seized will be sufficient to propel oneself to the pinnacle.

Of course, Lv Bai didn’t care for being invincible among peers.

He merely speculated about it.

From learning about the world’s power structure, he mused upon what the world’s "Node" might be.

A certain Heavenly and Earthly Treasure? Or some top-tier cultivation technique?

The influence doesn’t seem compelling enough, given one’s talent is fixed.

Then, what about luck?

Be it Spirit Fruit, Magical Treasure, or Immortal Scripture, under the concept of luck, they’re all encompassed within the idea of opportunity.

Lv Bai slid down from the towering giant tree, contemplative: "Then let’s give it a try."