Chapter 5: Entering the Sacred Land of Yaoguang

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"The Yao Guang Sanctuary is one of the most powerful sacred grounds in the Eastern Wasteland. Throughout history, countless pioneers who stirred up the winds of change were born on this land, yet as of today, they have long vanished, while Yao Guang still calmly observes the world’s affairs, standing firm and unshakable."

Steward Yang spoke lightly yet confidently about the might of the Yao Guang Sanctuary before beginning to address the matters that interested Li Yao.

There were many examples of individuals like Li Yao, who came from subordinate factions to train at the sacred ground; the procedures were already well-established.

For instance, upon entering Yao Guang Sanctuary, a powerful figure would use a magical artifact to check if one was a spy from another faction. Passing this step, a Supreme Elder-level figure would then assess the individual’s cultivation aptitude and assign a rank. The level determined the degree of preferential resources one would enjoy—higher aptitude meant greater resource advantages.

Within the sanctuary, disciples were also ranked—not by the common outer and inner sect divisions, but simply and bluntly as ordinary disciples and elite disciples.

Only elite disciples were permitted to study the Yao Guang Scripture, the sanctuary’s inherited text. Among hundreds of thousands of disciples, fewer than ten thousand could learn this scripture.

Of course, to study the Yao Guang Scripture, there was a final step: setting a restriction within the sea of consciousness to ensure the scripture would not be leaked outside or be extracted by powerful soul-searchers.

This final step applied to everyone, even those of sacred prince or princess rank. Every faction valued their heritage with utmost seriousness.

When Steward Yang finished explaining, Li Yao had a rough understanding. It had to be said that the rules in large powers were numerous, but because of this, over tens of thousands of years, their legacies rarely leaked.

Before Ye Fan, the Ji family’s Great Void Technique had never been known to be learned by outsiders, explaining why Ye Fan was relentlessly pursued in his early days.

"With your talent, it’s likely you’ll be classified as an elite disciple and study the Yao Guang Scripture. Just this step puts you far ahead of many others," Steward Yang said with envy.

Now approaching a hundred years old, with cultivation only at the Fourth Extreme Realm, Steward Yang naturally was not from an elite disciple background. He longed to learn the sanctuary’s supreme secrets but, unfortunately, lacked the qualification.

Li Yao shook his head modestly. "There are many disciples in Yao Guang Sanctuary. I may have decent aptitude, but compared to the entire sanctuary, there are probably countless with better talent."

"No need to be so humble. Your Dao rhythm is astonishing, and your innate bitter sea naturally opens—a superb cultivation prospect. I once took a disciple from another grotto and roughly tested his aptitude; he was not as good as you," Steward Yang said, his eyes flashing with memories, as if recalling that scene.

"Was that senior brother an elite disciple?" Li Yao asked curiously.

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He was now quite curious about his own cultivation talent. Judging by Steward Yang’s demeanor, his talent was perhaps not bad, but without a reference point, he had no idea how he truly measured up.

Steward Yang’s eyes narrowed slightly, his voice lowering. "He was from an elite disciple background, but no longer is."

Li Yao was puzzled. If he was no longer an elite disciple, could he have become an elder? But that seemed unlikely. Given Steward Yang’s age and cultivation, that senior brother shouldn’t be very old. It was improbable for someone so young to hold an elder position. In the original story, he was a relatively unknown figure.

"What do you mean by ‘not a disciple’?" Li Yao asked, genuinely curious.

"He is still a family member to you, also surnamed Li. Now he is a candidate for the sacred prince," Steward Yang said softly.

Li Yao was slightly stunned. He recalled who that person was. In the original story, he was indeed a known figure, a prodigy who early on manifested a strange phenomenon.

His combat strength placed him among the top young talents in the Eastern Wasteland. Unfortunately, he was unlucky—after birth, he was successively defeated by Xia Jiuyou and Pang Bo, and eventually suppressed by Ye Fan.

From the original story, he seemed like a mere lackey, but in reality, he was not.

With Li Rui’s talent, there were almost no barriers before the third celestial slashing path. He smoothly cultivated to the level of a great power at the second celestial realm, daring to contend with a generation of immortals, wielding an imperial weapon and boldly attacking Central Continent.

Li Yao had not expected his own talent to surpass Li Rui’s. Although Steward Yang’s judgment was not authoritative, the gap was probably not very large.

With such talent, combined with the comprehension boost from the divine book, Li Yao truly believed he had a promising future. The only uncertainty was whether he might suddenly perish.

This uncertainty was shared by everyone, unless one was like Ye Fan, who had a heavenly emperor-level power standing behind him, ruling over the world.

...

After tireless travel, one day later, they finally crossed three hundred thousand miles and arrived at the Yao Guang Sanctuary.

Yao Guang Sanctuary was shrouded in mist, its scenery exquisite, like a celestial land.

As the top-tier power of the Eastern Wasteland, its base was naturally magnificent and vast. At a glance, there was no end in sight—only endless palatial complexes and majestic mansions.

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The Hengyang Grotto was already imposing in Li Yao’s eyes, but before Yao Guang Sanctuary, it was nothing at all; the difference was too striking.

The group halted here. Given their status, they could not simply rush in.

Exotic beasts landed, and the war chariot thundered to the ground. Li Yao stepped down, looking up at the city walls that stretched beyond sight, grand and vast. In the middle of the wall hung an ancient plaque.

On it were the characters "Yao Guang," written with vigorous strokes, as if penned by a peerless master. Over time, the Dao rhythm of the ancient script had not diminished, still radiating a majestic aura.

Just standing there, Li Yao felt a wave of pressure wash over him. The city before him seemed like a massive, winding dragon, while he felt infinitely small.

"Let’s go. I’ll take you inside. Complete all procedures today, and tomorrow a Supreme Elder will teach you the cultivation scriptures," Steward Yang said, stepping toward the city.

Li Yao nodded, calming his emotions, and followed Steward Yang into the Yao Guang Sanctuary.

Passing through the city gates, the view suddenly opened up. In the distance, mountains stretched on endlessly, waterfalls cascading like heavenly rivers, tumbling down like a hanging Milky Way, thundering into a great river below.

Beneath the mountain range lay sprawling palatial complexes.

"These are the residences of ordinary disciples. Yao Guang Sanctuary has a million disciples. Although not all live inside the sanctuary, the number is still enormous," Steward Yang explained to Li Yao.

"Is this really just where ordinary disciples live?" Li Yao was astonished. To his eye, this palace complex was already very luxurious. Even the worst buildings were no worse than the Hengyang Hall.

Unexpectedly, these were only the poorest quarters. The deeper they went, the more magnificent the halls became, glowing brilliantly under the sunlight.

And this was merely the ordinary disciples’ residence within Yao Guang Sanctuary. Li Yao could scarcely imagine how extraordinary the elite disciples’ quarters must be.