The three primes conferred among themselves with their eyes. Surprise was reflected in each other. At first, they hadn’t paid much attention to the genius that Ziju Min had dug up from the garden of another. Shao Yuan was supposed to be much more important pill dao–wise than martial dao.

But the Eternal Sacred Land was where even the most exceptional pill dao master was only an accent to its main force. Experts in that area couldn’t influence the faction’s direction as a whole.

Now they realized that they’d overlooked the young man’s potential. He was proficient in both martial and pill daos.

The Nine Winding Caves had a certain amount of difficulty, but it tested for talent even moreso; it was a cursory probe into young geniuses’ untapped ability. Thus, crushing or overwhelming strength wasn’t necessarily needed for success. Being talented in every area often conferred the superior advantage.

“Young man, the eighth cave is quite a bit...