Dual Cultivator with a cultivation system

"Hehe, maybe we can enter the rankings before Wang Ming does," Bai Lingxi said with a smug grin as she causally kicked a corose of a player out of her way as he sawlled towards the other girls.

But suddenly, she felt a chill run down her spine. Her smile stiffened as she noticed Luo Li and Shi Yu staring at her with blank expressions.

"My damn mouth…" Bai Lingxi cursed just as a new system message appeared before her.

[Ding Dong]

[Disciple Wang Ming has entered the rankings]

Bai Lingxi and the other girls stood frozen for a few minutes before their faces started twitching. It wasn't just them—everyone in the crowd was equally stunned when they saw the message:

[Ding Dong]

[Ranking Update]

[A disciple participating in the Sect Promotion Exam has entered the Rankings]

"What!!" someone in the crowd exclaimed, rubbing his eyes repeatedly to check if he was hallucinating or if the virtual system had glitched. But as the message remained, his eyes widened and his jaw practically hit the ground.

"Wait, what the hell? Are you kidding me?! A disciple using the virtual simulation for the first time directly entered the rankings?" another person shouted in disbelief, glaring at the notification.

He knew very well that the Inner Court Promotion Exam was meant for Outer Court disciples who had never accessed this simulation facility before. Since the exam had only been going on for a few hours, he refused to believe that anyone could achieve the absurd kill count required to make it onto the leaderboard so quickly. Normally, one had to kill not just hundreds but thousands of beasts to earn enough points, and even veteran players often failed to enter the rankings. The rankings weren't stagnant—they constantly changed as players' scores increased.

"Fuck, could it be an elder or a Core Disciple disguised to put pressure on the participants? At least show the damn name!" someone speculated, and a few others nodded at the possibility. But just as quickly, they shook their heads—what would be the point of such a move? Still, they couldn't bring themselves to believe it was a new disciple because it was comeptley absurd in their view.

Meanwhile, Bai Lingxi, who had been watching the reactions from the sidelines, frowned.

"Hmm… they can't see his name?" she muttered with a raised eyebrow

"Maybe the Sect Master is hiding his name from the public," Bai Lingxi thought. It was indeed plausible.

---

"That was close. Good thing I reacted in time or his name would have been exposed to everyone. Now, only his Dao companions can see it," Jiang Hong said, wiping the sweat from his brow. He had used his authority as Sect Master to immediately erase Wang Ming's name from the notification and leaderboard. Acting the moment he sensed Wang Ming's intention, he was just fast enough to make the changes before the announcement was made inside the virtual world. He also ensured that only Wang Ming's Dao partners could view his name.

"Speaking of his partners, they've also reached the Golden Core Realm—especially that girl Bai Lingxi. She's as much an anomaly as Disciple Wang Ming," Lei Ping said with a smile as he stroked his beard, noting how quickly they had all advanced.

"Heh, looks like my peak will be number one in the future," said Zhou Huixin smugly, casting a provocative smile at the other Peak Masters. Veins bulged on their foreheads as gloomy expressions settled in—especially on Mu Feixu's face, who was gritting her teeth. Her expression darkened even further when she saw Zhou Huixin wink at her.

"Fuck off, you bitch. He hasn't even joined your peak yet. Stop being so arrogant," Mu Feixu snorted, trying to act indifferent.

"Oh? Is that jealousy I sense?" Zhou Huixin teased, causing Mu Feixu's eyebrow to twitch. She took several deep breaths to calm herself down.

"It's good you acted quickly, Sect Master. Right now, only we and probably the Heavenly Sword Sect know about him. If others found out, they'd surely send assassins," Qin Mu said calmly. Only the Yang-Yin Sect and the Heavenly Sword Sect knew Wang Ming's true identity, as Tang Nian was with him and he knew the Heavenly Sword Sect also saw Wang Ming's performance. While the Heavenly Sword Sect wasn't despicable enough to resort to assassination, other sects wouldn't hesitate. The others in the room nodded in agreement.

"How are you so calm? Aren't you afraid of losing your position as the Peak Master of the top peak?" Mu Feixu snapped at him.

"It doesn't matter. It's just this year. I'm sure after the competition, they'll leave. Second place isn't so bad—unlike someone I know who might end up at the bottom," Qin Mu replied coolly, and Mu Feixu felt invisible arrows stabbing into her heart.

"Hahaha! Well said, Peak Master Qin Mu," Zhou Huixin laughed, thoroughly enjoying Mu Feixu's pale and speechless expression.

"Oh, looks like he's not stopping," Lei Ping said as he watched Wang Ming's ranking continue to rise at an extremely fast pace. On another screen, he could see golden arcs soaring from Wang Ming's sword as he relentlessly slaughtered beasts and advanced to the next area.

"Wait a minute... I almost forgot about the elder responsible for monitoring the leaderboard," Jiang Hong muttered, suddenly remembering what he had overlooked.

Ring Ring

He took out his sect token and contacted the elder. A few seconds later, the call was answered.

"Yes, Sect Master, do you need something?" said the elder on the other end of the token, though his voice sounded slightly nervous.

"By the way, Elder, did you notice a new name appear on the rankings?" Jiang Hong asked in a serious tone.

"Yes, it was a disciple named Wang Ming, but his name was replaced by question marks, and his picture vanished. Could I be mistaken? I saw he was listed as an outer court disciple," the elder replied hopefully.

"No, you saw correctly. I was the one who hid his name. And do not tell anyone about this—understood?" Jiang Hong said firmly.

"Y-Yes, I understand," the elder replied with a panicked voice.

"Are you okay, Elder?" Jiang Hong asked with a frown.

"Yes, I'm fine," the elder replied. Jiang Hong didn't say anything else and ended the call.