This time, Taixu Gate sent three Jigou period cultivators, leading a group of outer sect disciples to participate in the trip to Xianglong Valley.

  Apart from the middle-aged woman in the Qi Condensation stage who was responsible for replacing the spirit stones, there was also a middle-aged man with knife scars on his face in the Qi Condensation stage. Another person was a young man with the surname Chen, who had long hair and an icy expression, and Zhao had never seen him speak before. His cultivation was unfathomable, and he seemed to be a bit stronger than the other two, likely being a late-stage Qi Condensation cultivator.

  Zhao Di had also seen many foundation-building cultivators before, but the feeling these two gave him was clearly different. If he met their gaze for even a moment, he would involuntarily lower his head and not dare to look at them again, no matter how short a time. The legendary "awe-inspiring without anger" and "overbearing aura" were probably used to describe people like this.

  According to Xiong Zhangmen, these two are the winners who walked out of Xiānglóng Valley that year. Both were outer door disciples and performed exceptionally well in the Xiānglóng Valley mission, earning them the reward of the Jījī Dān. As a result, they entered the ranks of Jījī period cultivators. Especially the young cultivator from the late Jījī period, who was favored by an elder of the Tàixū Men and accepted as a disciple. He has now become one of the outstanding figures among the younger generation of the Tàixū Men.

  Many foundation-building cultivators of Tai Xu Men, those who can be mentioned in the same breath as him, are probably only a few, such as the extremely fast Ice Spirit Root cultivator with the surname Leng. However, most of them are famous because of their rare and unusual spiritual roots. As for this Chen surname cultivator with an icy expression, it is said that his spiritual root talent is ordinary, but he has experienced countless fierce battles, killing several same-level cultivators. Not only in Tai Xu Men, but also among the seven major cultivation sects in Jin Yan Country, he is a renowned figure.

  As for the middle-aged cultivator with a knife scar over three inches long on his face, although he was not as famous as that Chen cultivator, he was also a formidable character. It is said that he had killed cultivators whose cultivation was higher than his own, and the scar on his face was left from that incident. For cultivators, it's not difficult to recover from physical scars and wounds, but this person deliberately kept the scar that occupied half of his face, making him look somewhat ferocious. It made people feel a chill down their spine at first glance.

  The Taixu Gate sent these two to lead the team, firstly to prevent any malicious villains; secondly, also to set a shining example for the disciples participating in the Dragon Valley mission, so that they can see hope and further ignite their fighting spirit.

  When the three Jiedan stage cultivators led the Taixu boat to slowly descend onto the desert, hundreds of Lianqi stage cultivators who had been waiting in the desert for a long time couldn't help but cast their eyes on this luxurious golden dragon jade boat. Many people also uttered words of admiration and whispered discussions. At this time, several Jiedan stage cultivators turned their heads to scan those disciples who were discussing with cold and stern gazes. After a while, the scene returned to calmness.

  All the disciples of Tai Xuan Men got off the dragon boat, and the three Jīgōng period cultivators came down last. After the last Chen surname cultivator got off the dragon boat, the young woman in the Jīgōng middle period made a move to cast a spell on the dragon boat. In the blink of an eye, the dragon boat quickly shrunk to less than one foot in size and flew onto the palm of the young woman's hand, under a white mist, and was put into her storage bag.

  "Chen Shizhu, it's been years since we last met. I didn't expect that this time, it would be the two of us leading the team again." A fat monk with a belly bigger than a woman about to give birth, holding a tattered banana fan in his hand, walked up with a smile and greeted the young man surnamed Chen who had just disembarked from the dragon boat.

  The young man nodded slightly at the monk, without saying a word.

  The monk seemed to have expected this and was not surprised at all, but instead turned to face the other two foundation-building cultivators of the Tai Xu Gate and saluted, saying: "I am Ding Yuan, I don't know how to address you two donors."

  The other two saw the old man in the late stage of foundation building greeting them and hurriedly bowed back.

  "In the Lower Ink, I met Dingyuan Daoist friend," said the scar-faced man.

  "In the lower Loulan, I have seen the great master." The middle-aged woman also responded with courtesy.

  These few people had just finished introducing themselves when six or seven Foundation Building cultivators walked over, seemingly the leaders of each sect's trip to Dragon Descent Valley this time.

  At the time when the foundation-building cultivators were exchanging greetings, the disciples of Tai Xuan Men also turned their attention to the hundreds of Qi-refining cultivators with different attire gathered in the desert.

  Zhao Di roughly scanned and found that these monks were divided into six piles, obviously the disciples of the other six factions of the three religions and four gates.

  Among them, there is a group of monks who are all bald and wear the same deep yellow robes, at a glance it can be known that they are the only Buddhist school among the seven schools: Jingming Sect.

  To the right of Jing Ming Zong, there were both men and women, wearing colorful and varied attire, a group of cultivators. These cultivators each had several peculiar bags tied around their waists, bulging as if living creatures were moving inside, clearly recognizable as spirit beast pouches used to hold spirit beasts. And these cultivators should be the ones from Bai Ling Men, famous for cultivating and controlling spirit beasts.

  Just thinking about the various poisonous insects and monsters in these spirit beast bags made Zhao Di feel a chill run down his spine.

  Further to the right are people dressed in uniform attire, with green robes and hair buns, resembling Taoist priests and priestesses. No need to think twice, these must be the people from the Jade Pure Gate.

  There are two more sects that are similar to the Tai Xu Sect, both of which are mixed with men and women of all kinds, except for the fact that they wear clothes with the name of each sect written on them, there is nothing special about them.

  The most eye-catching is the Yuan Yue Sect cultivator who is in the middle of these six sects. The Yuan Yue Sect is the only one among the seven sects where women are the majority, and it is popular with some cultivation methods tailored for female cultivators, many of which have anti-aging and beauty effects. The few male disciples in the sect are also the dual-cultivation partners of the female disciples who practice dual-cultivation techniques.

  It is said that when recruiting female disciples, Yuan Yue Sect not only requires spiritual roots and cultivation level but also has high requirements for appearance. The looks must be at least average or above to be admitted. With the heavenly spirit energy of the cultivators' practice, their skin is naturally nourished from the inside out. As a result, the female disciples of Yuan Yue Sect all look like peach blossoms, with skin as smooth as jade, and every move they make exudes an enchanting charm, just like a mortal fairy.

  Zhao Di couldn't help but take a few more glances, and suddenly saw that one of the Yuan Yue Sect female disciples who was staring at him, threw him a flirtatious glance. His face slightly reddened, and he subconsciously turned his head away.

  Zhao calmed down and looked at these people with a cold gaze, devoid of any emotion.

  He noticed that, looking at the female disciples of Yuan Yue Sect, it was not only the people of Tai Xu Men who were paying attention to them. The other five sects also had many male disciples who were intentionally or unintentionally glancing in the direction of the Yuan Yue Sect's disciples, sneaking a few peeks. Even some of the monks and Taoist priests from Jing Ming Sect and Yu Qing Men couldn't help but take a closer look at the stunning beauty of the Yuan Yue Sect's people.

  The female cultivators of the Moon Embracing Sect, who were as beautiful as flowers and jade, seemed to be enjoying the attention from the crowd. Not only did they not feel disgusted, but they would also occasionally turn towards the direction of the onlookers and give a captivating, enchanting smile that could move people's hearts. Even the bald-headed monks of the Jing Ming Sect received quite a few such "gifts" in return.

  Zhao Di even felt that the female cultivators of the Moon Embracing Sect seemed to have a greater interest in these monks and Taoist priests. Half of the flirtatious glances they threw were directed at these two groups of cultivators, causing many young monks and Taoist priests to become flustered and blush bright red.

  Zhao Di was watching this ambiguous and strange scene with great interest, when suddenly a low and dull shout sounded in his ear.

  "Hmph!" The one who let out this low growl was none other than Shen Mo, the scar-faced cultivator. His cold hum was not loud, but it entered the ears of the numerous Taixu Sect cultivators like a thunderclap, seemingly infused with a thread of spiritual energy and emitted through a special technique.

  Those eyes that were infatuated with the beauty of the female cultivator immediately focused on this scarred face, and the huge contrast made these disciples feel as if they had just woken up from a dream.

  "You all listen clearly! The hundreds of Qi Refining stage cultivators here, in just one day, will become your arch-enemies! If you encounter them in the Dragon Subduing Valley, it's either they die or you perish! If you can't withstand their seductive techniques and show mercy, losing three points of morale before even fighting, you are doomed to die at their hands. To survive, you must cast aside those filthy thoughts!"

  He paused for a moment, then continued, "Remember this: once you're in the valley, it's every man for himself. If you encounter someone stronger than you, stay far away. If you meet someone weaker than yourself, be ruthless and decisive! The hypocritical nonsense of fake kindness and courtesy won't work here. In fact, not just in this Dragon Descending Valley, but anywhere in the cultivation world, it's always been the strong who rule supreme. Powerful cultivators often encounter lower-level cultivators and, if they're slightly displeased, will eliminate them without hesitation. Cooperating with someone far stronger than yourself and relying on them is essentially putting your life in their hands - it's the most foolish thing to do. Only by grasping your own destiny firmly in your hands can you truly follow the path of cultivation! Those of you who manage to survive and emerge from the valley will naturally understand this logic even more clearly."

  (Second update, two more tonight! Seeking support!)