Approximately ten thousand years ago, upon the Nine Provinces Continent.
The term "martial cultivation" was foreign to most people.
Because at that time, those who possessed martial cultivation techniques would not readily share the art of martial cultivation with outsiders.
Thus, there were very few martial cultivators on the Nine Provinces Continent. Only nine great clans—the Sui, Tang, Song, Yuan, Ming, Jie, Qing, and Jiu—knew the purest art of martial cultivation.
The nine great clans divided the Nine Provinces Continent into nine territories, each ruling over one region.
And they named their territories after their surnames.
The name "Nine Provinces Continent" itself originated from this arrangement.
The nine great clans' dominion over the Nine Provinces Continent was unquestionable.
And the common folk, ignorant of the art of martial cultivation, believed that those from the nine great clans who wielded mysterious powers were immortals descended from the heavens.
And so they revered the Nine Great Immortal Clans as gods.
Although most people on the Nine Provinces Continent did not understand the path of martial cultivation, a small number had, through fortunate encounters, caught the faintest glimpse of its surface.
These people were called Immortal Cultivators, and their goal was to become true immortals.
Though the strength of these Immortal Cultivators could not compare to the nine great clans, they possessed power far beyond what common folk could ever hope to reach.
And so these Immortal Cultivators became objects of admiration and reverence among the people.
The Immortal Cultivators had also formed into multiple factions. Within Yuan Province, the most powerful Immortal Cultivator faction was universally recognized to be the Demon Subduing Sect.
The Demon Subduing Sect was among the smaller factions by number among the many Immortal Cultivator forces throughout all of Yuan Province.
And the reason they could rise to become the strongest of Yuan Province's many immortal-seeking factions was because of their leader.
Their leader's strength was formidable. Though he could not compare to the true experts of the nine great clans, among the Immortal Cultivators, he was absolutely outstanding.
And at this very moment, the Demon Subduing Sect's Master, along with the sect's elites, had all appeared in Falling Flower City.
This... naturally caused quite a stir.
Right now, outside an inn in Falling Flower City, a massive crowd had gathered.
The area was packed shoulder to shoulder with the city's citizens, because those elites of the Demon Subduing Sect were stationed right outside this inn.
These people wore white robes and carried Dark Iron Swords on their backs—not only was their bearing extraordinary, but they radiated an air of righteous conviction.
At a glance, they were indeed impressive, possessing something of an immortal's poise and a sage's demeanor.
At this moment, they stood in neat formation around the inn like honor guards, stationed here in watchful protection.
However, the Demon Subduing Sect's Master was not among them.
Because the Demon Subduing Sect's Master was inside the inn.
In this situation, the citizens wore expressions of disappointment. After all, the one they most wanted to see was the Demon Subduing Sect's Master.
And watching the citizens of the entire city yearn so desperately to meet their Master, and hearing the praise the citizens heaped upon them, a flicker of pride surfaced on the faces of these Demon Subduing Sect members.
After all, their Master was the very source of their pride.
But neither the citizens of the entire city nor the elites of the Demon Subduing Sect could have imagined.
That the Demon Subduing Sect's Master—whom they regarded as infinitely powerful and nearly an immortal—at this very moment was kneeling inside that inn.
He was kneeling before a middle-aged man.
This man had graying temples and an extraordinary bearing.