Two hours later, Zhang Ling returned to his cave dwelling, pondering the words of Old Mu along the way. The Foundation Establishment Pill can only be refined by immortal cultivation sects and is scarce, rarely circulating outside. To obtain the Foundation Establishment Pill, one must join a sect, which is not a simple matter for rogue cultivators. However, cultivators in Falling Star City have such an opportunity every thirty years, an opportunity related to the Nine Great Sects. The so-called Nine Great Sects are an alliance of immortal cultivation sects. They consist of the Azure Cloud Temple, White Crane Mountain, and Hao Yuan Sect in the Cangyun Kingdom; the Cloud Sword Peak and Flame Fire Sect in the Tianyang Kingdom; and the Beast Taming Sect, Blood Bone Sect, Joyful Valley, and Giant Demon Sect in the Yuanfeng Kingdom. Each of the nine sects in the three countries has Nascent Soul cultivators sitting in charge, and some sects have more than one Nascent Soul cultivator. In the world of immortal cultivation, the law of the jungle prevails, and all below the Nascent Soul stage are mere ants. Only sects with Nascent Soul cultivators can establish themselves in the cultivation world. The Nine Great Sects originally only had influence within their own countries until a falling star descended five hundred years ago, forming the Falling Star Mountain Range. A great change occurred in the Falling Star Land, forming a secret realm that burns with heavenly fire all year round. Even high-level cultivators could not change this phenomenon and could only set up formations nearby to prevent the spread of the heavenly fire. Over time, this place was called 'Blazing Flame Valley' by cultivators.
Blazing Flame Valley is different from other secret realms. Burning with heavenly fire, it gradually nurtured some special demon beasts, spiritual herbs, and other things. Because the Falling Star Mountain Range is located at the junction of the three countries, the Nine Great Sects united to control the Falling Star Mountain Range and establish Falling Star City in order to divide the resources of the mountain range. Blazing Flame Valley was also designated as a forbidden area, only accessible to disciples of the Nine Great Sects. However, with the establishment of Falling Star City, it attracted a large number of rogue cultivators. These cultivators were not highly skilled but numerous, and they once joined forces with some immortal cultivation families to protest against the Nine Great Sects. The Nine Great Sects were powerful and naturally did not take the rogue cultivators and families seriously, and there were even several massacres. Many cultivators were killed, but these people were weak, and the Nine Great Sects naturally did not care. However, things are unpredictable, and this incident triggered a crisis that swept through the three countries. Who would have thought that among these rogue cultivators, someone would break through to the Nascent Soul stage? This person had always remembered the events of that year. After breaking through to the Nascent Soul stage, his strength greatly increased, and he used the events of that year to gather a group of rogue cultivators and stir up a riot in the three countries, slaughtering many disciples of the Nine Sects. Several Golden Core cultivators also perished. Golden Core cultivators were already high-level cultivators, and they were elders in each sect, the backbone of the sect. Such losses were unbearable even for the nine sects. The final result was naturally the defeat of this Nascent Soul cultivator, but he did not die and escaped the sphere of influence of the three countries. The Nine Sects lost face and vowed to extract the soul and refine the spirit of that Nascent Soul cultivator, but they have not succeeded for hundreds of years. The occurrence of such an event also caused panic among the secular mortals of the three countries. After all, a Nascent Soul cultivator with no attachments would act without any scruples. When gods fight, mortals suffer. The destructive power of high-level cultivators fighting can be imagined, and destroying a country or city is not difficult. The deaths of a large number of mortals also made mortals fear and revere the immortal sects. Although mortals are ants in the eyes of cultivators, there would be no cultivators without mortals. This is the foundation of the cultivation world. These mortals lived in fear for decades, even centuries, afterward. Therefore, the number of disciples recruited by the Nine Sects in the secular world greatly decreased, which also hindered their development to some extent. The Nine Sects did not expect this to happen. Subsequently, they also began to pay attention to the secular mortals, often showing some miracles and rebuilding their faith in the secular world. As for the rogue cultivators, the Nine Great Sects no longer suppressed them as before and gave them opportunities for advancement. The most direct opportunity is that each sect's disciple recruitment ceremony is also open to rogue cultivators. There are such opportunities in some specific markets in the three countries. However, such opportunities have strict requirements for rogue cultivators, including restrictions on cultivation level and age, as well as assessments of fighting skills. The rogue cultivators who can eventually join the sect are all outstanding individuals. This is also the brilliance of the sect, a two-birds-with-one-stone plan.
Doing so can not only weaken the power of rogue cultivators but also absorb the masters among them, turning them into sect disciples and strengthening their own power. Because of the special location of Falling Star City, it has attracted most of the rogue cultivators from the three countries. Every thirty years, the Nine Great Sects jointly hold a disciple recruitment conference and also open the Blazing Flame Valley. At that time, the Nine Great Sects will also send disciples to enter it together. As long as they can come out of the Blazing Flame Valley alive, they can become disciples of the Nine Great Sects. If they can find enough spiritual objects and herbs, there will also be rewards such as Foundation Establishment Pills. Blazing Flame Valley is a famous dangerous place. Each opening of the Blazing Flame Valley is accompanied by the death of a large number of rogue cultivators, and less than 30% of the rogue cultivators can successfully come out. If cultivators want to further their cultivation, they must strive for resources. For Qi Refining cultivators, the Foundation Establishment Pill is the most important resource, a chance to go further. Hearing about the past events of the Nine Great Sects and the Blazing Flame Valley secret realm, Zhang Ling's mood was complicated for a time. This is an opportunity for rogue cultivators, and it is also his opportunity, and there are still three years before the next disciple recruitment conference of the Nine Great Sects. If he wants to obtain the Foundation Establishment Pill, this is the only opportunity he knows of so far. Moreover, he can also become a sect disciple. Zhang Ling asked himself that he had a mysterious bead to catalyze spiritual herbs, so he had no worries about cultivating to the peak of Qi Refining, but he was not sure about Foundation Establishment. After thinking for a few days, Zhang Ling made up his mind to participate in the Blazing Flame Valley trip of the Nine Great Sects in three years. To this end, he adjusted his cultivation plan again. He is now at the eighth level of Qi Refining, and entering the Blazing Flame Valley with this strength is also courting death. At that time, there will be not only rogue cultivators but also disciples of the Nine Great Sects, and their strength must be higher than that of rogue cultivators. Although the Nine Great Sects are all established by immortal cultivators, they are different from each other, and each family's inheritance is different. For example, the Azure Cloud Temple's inheritance technique, the Purple Cloud Skill, can be practiced by any spiritual root. It is the best technique for laying the foundation. The spiritual power of the disciples who practice it is condensed and thicker, and they have 30% more spiritual power than cultivators of the same level. There is also the Cloud Sword Sect of Tianyang Kingdom. They are sword cultivator inheritance and have strong fighting strength. The disciples of the Beast Taming Sect have spirit beasts to assist them, and their strength is also not comparable to ordinary cultivators. The Blood Bone Sect and the Giant Demon Sect are demonic sects, often practicing strange secret techniques. Sect disciples have elders to teach them and the resources of the sect to cultivate them. Whether it is spells or magic weapons, they are better than rogue cultivators. Without a certain amount of strength and self-preservation means, facing these cultivators can be said to be a narrow escape from death. Since he decided to participate in the Blazing Flame Valley trip in three years, the most important thing now is to enhance his cultivation. Zhang Ling first went to the Earth Fire Room to rent a month of Earth Fire and refined a large number of pills at all costs. Then he closed his doors and worked hard to cultivate.