Volume 1: Femme Fatale Chapter 49: The Six Great Immortal Cultivation Sects

"Senior, to be honest with you! As a newcomer to the Southern Xia Kingdom, I am not yet well-versed in its various immortal cultivation sects. I hope you can guide me, Senior," Jiang Hao said after a moment of thought, cupping his fists respectfully.

"This..." Qin Jiangtang feigned hesitation and did not reply immediately.

Before Jiang Hao could speak again, Qin Yumei, standing beside them, could no longer restrain herself. She hugged Qin Jiangtang's arm and coaxed, "Father! Stop keeping us in suspense!"

"With your status and connections in the Southern Xia Kingdom, recommending an immortal cultivation sect to Jiang Hao should be effortless for you!"

"Right! Father, you must recommend a powerful sect for Jiang Hao, preferably one of the Six Great Immortal Cultivation Sects of the Southern Xia Kingdom!"

"Besides, Jiang Hao is now practically your half-son. We must not bring shame to our Myriad Treasures Pavilion! Am I right, Father?" Qin Yumei said sweetly.

"Haha! You girl! If only you could be this considerate of your father all the time, I would be completely content," Qin Jiangtang said, gently tapping Qin Yumei's forehead with a face full of indulgence.

"Oh! Father, am I not good to you on normal days?" Qin Yumei continued to act spoiled.

"Alright, alright! My daughter, Qin Jiangtang's daughter, is naturally the best to me! Look, today you even brought back a desirable husband for me!" Qin Jiangtang laughed heartily.

"Father, you are making fun of me again!" Qin Yumei blushed with shyness.

"..." Jiang Hao stood quietly on the side, not daring to interrupt.

Qin Jiangtang stroked his beard and looked solemnly at Jiang Hao, "Little brother Jiang Hao, the immortal cultivation sects in the Southern Xia Kingdom are countless, numbering nearly several hundred large and small! When it comes to the most powerful ones in the kingdom, they are none other than the Six Great Immortal Cultivation Sects."

"The Six Great Immortal Cultivation Sects?" Jiang Hao asked curiously.

"Indeed!" Qin Jiangtang continued earnestly, "These six sects are the Giant Sword Sect, which focuses primarily on swordsmanship; the Overlord Saber Gate, renowned for its saber techniques; the Five Poisons Cult, famous for its mastery of poisons; the Beast Taming Hall, celebrated for its beast-taming arts; the Blazing Heaven Fortress, rooted in the power of flames; and the Evergreen Valley, celebrated for its skill in alchemy."

"These six major sects occupy half of the immortal cultivation world in the Southern Xia Kingdom, and their strength cannot be underestimated!" Qin Jiangtang added solemnly.

"The Overlord Saber Gate, renowned for its saber techniques? And the Five Poisons Cult, famous for its poisons?" Hearing this, Jiang Hao fell into deep thought.

"Could it be that the three young cultivators I encountered earlier in the Misty Forest were disciples of the Overlord Saber Gate and the Five Poisons Cult?" he thought to himself.

"However, the techniques used by the remaining cultivator are still somewhat unguessable to this day." Recalling the moves displayed by that person at the time, Jiang Hao felt a wave of profound emotion.

"Little brother Jiang Hao? What are you thinking about?" Seeing Jiang Hao in a trance, Qin Jiangtang gently called out to him.

"Oh, it's nothing. Just that hearing your description, Senior, reminded me of someone," Jiang Hao snapped back to reality and replied.

"Oh? Little brother Jiang Hao, feel free to share," Qin Jiangtang said, looking slightly curious.

Jiang Hao nodded and slowly recounted, "To be honest with you, Senior, when I was training in the Misty Forest earlier, I happened to encounter a few young cultivators."

"One of them was particularly unusual. He was originally thin and frail, but after executing a certain secret technique, all the meridians across his body suddenly bulged, transforming him almost into a fierce beast with blood-red eyes flashing, and his strength increased dramatically."

"Does Senior know if there is any sect in the Southern Xia Kingdom that practices such demonic techniques?" Jiang Hao inquired.

Hearing this, Qin Jiangtang frowned slightly. After pondering for a moment, he slowly said, "If I am not mistaken, that person should be a disciple of the Beast Taming Hall."

"Little brother Jiang Hao, you may not know this. The disciples of the Beast Taming Hall are all tamers of beasts and are capable of summoning demonic beasts. Rumor has it that their supreme secret technique is the transformation art of human-beast integration, allowing practitioners to gain the power and traits of beasts through morphological transformation."

"It seems that the disciple you encountered earlier holds no low status within the Beast Taming Hall," Qin Jiangtang cast a meaningful glance at Jiang Hao, seemingly having already guessed something in his heart.

"The Beast Taming Hall?" Jiang Hao pondered inwardly, "I didn't expect that even before the Azure Cloud Assembly has begun, I might have already made enemies with half of the Six Great Immortal Cultivation Sects of the Southern Xia Kingdom."

Before Qin Jiangtang could speak further, Jiang Hao stepped forward and asked, "Senior, the threshold for entering these six major sects must be extremely high, and I dare not trouble you with that. I only need to find a suitable sect so that I can participate in the upcoming Azure Cloud Assembly."

In Jiang Hao's view, although these six sects were powerful, until he could fully confirm the true identities of those three cultivators, he would never dare to rashly join any of them.

If he were to run into those three young cultivators again, wouldn't that be walking straight into a death trap? Furthermore, with only a single month left until the Azure Cloud Assembly, Jiang Hao certainly would not take such a risk.

"Little brother Jiang Hao's decision really makes me look at you with new respect," Qin Jiangtang feigned surprise.

Jiang Hao's words were already clear; he merely wanted to find a sect to register his name for now. How could Qin Jiangtang fail to understand that?

Coupled with Jiang Hao's expression earlier, Qin Jiangtang half-guessed that Jiang Hao had probably formed a grudge against the disciple from the Beast Taming Hall, though he chose not to expose it on the spot.

Beside them, Qin Yumei immediately grew displeased upon hearing this. She hurried to Jiang Hao's side and tried to persuade him, "Husband, why are you doing this?"

"Countless people would break their heads trying to enter the Six Great Immortal Cultivation Sects of the Southern Xia Kingdom! Don't worry, as long as my father steps forward, even the leaders of these six sects will give him some face!" Qin Yumei continued.

"Yumei, actually I..." Jiang Hao was temporarily at a loss for words, not knowing how to explain.

He certainly couldn't tell her directly that he had already made enemies with the Six Great Immortal Cultivation Sects, otherwise, given Qin Yumei's personality, she would only worry even more.

Just at that moment, Qin Jiangtang perceived Jiang Hao's dilemma and hurriedly smiled to smooth things over, "Yumei, actually little brother Jiang Hao's decision might not be a bad thing after all!"

"Father, why are you getting confused along with him?" Qin Yumei turned around, looking at Qin Jiangtang with a face full of incomprehension.

Qin Jiangtang stroked his beard and explained earnestly, "Although these six major sects are powerful, they may not be suitable for little brother Jiang Hao right now."

"Look, there is only one month left before the Azure Cloud Assembly begins. Which of the six major sects is less than ten days' journey away from the imperial capital? If little brother Jiang Hao were to truly join one of them, most of this month would be wasted simply traveling back and forth."

"Wouldn't it be far more appropriate if little brother Jiang Hao could spend this time focusing on cultivation instead?" Qin Jiangtang smiled as he looked at Qin Yumei.

Hearing this, Jiang Hao mentally gave a thumbs-up: "As expected of Yumei's father, he thinks things through so thoroughly."

Had Qin Jiangtang not stepped in to bail him out, Jiang Hao truly wouldn't have known how to explain himself to Qin Yumei.

Qin Yumei nodded with a half-understanding expression, then asked anxiously, "Father, do you have a suitable sect in mind then?"

Qin Jiangtang smiled faintly and slowly replied, "Yumei, right here in the imperial capital, there is an immortal cultivation academy that is just right for little brother Jiang Hao to join."

Hearing this, Qin Yumei frowned, then sudden realization dawned upon her, "Father, could the sect you are referring to be the imperial family's Dragon Gate Academy?"

"Dragon Gate Academy?" Jiang Hao frowned slightly, full of curiosity.

"Indeed! It is precisely the Dragon Gate Academy!" Qin Jiangtang answered firmly, and then continued, "Although its reputation may not rival the Six Great Immortal Cultivation Sects, it is, after all, an immortal cultivation academy personally established by the imperial family of the Southern Xia Kingdom, and its strength cannot be underestimated."

"To take a step back, if little brother Jiang Hao can join the Dragon Gate Academy, he can save more time for cultivation instead of exhausting himself traveling between the six major sects."

"When the time comes, I will personally take little brother Jiang Hao to the imperial palace to have an audience with Her Majesty the Queen. I believe Her Majesty will also give me enough face to grant little brother Jiang Hao more care and attention," Qin Jiangtang added.

"Father, I think this idea is viable! Let's do as you say!" Qin Yumei nodded in praise.

"Her Majesty the Queen?" Jiang Hao could not help but feel astonished inwardly.