The two young Taoists at the very front had already collapsed helplessly to the ground under the overwhelming aura of Henry Bolton. Meanwhile, in the rear hall of the temple, where Owen was cultivating, he opened his eyes in astonishment, and two beams of golden light shot out from his eyes, flashing by. Since Owen had already reached the Brewing Pill stage, even though he was over 300 years old, he still looked as young as thirty. Although Henry Bolton had only used a bit of his immortal power, to Owen, who had only reached the mid-Brewing Pill stage, it sounded no less than a thunderclap. What was even stranger was that this trace of immortal power felt so familiar, almost identical to the Wudang Immortal Technique he practiced himself. But who else in the Wudang Sect could possess such a high level of cultivation? Although Owen was full of doubts, he dared not be careless in the slightest. He got up and walked toward the main hall, where dozens of Wudang elders from past generations were already standing, each with a look of surprise on their faces. When they saw Owen emerge from the rear hall, everyone instinctively made way for him, then followed behind as he walked toward the entrance.

If anyone were to see these Taoists at this moment, they would be utterly shocked, for every one of them had once been a renowned figure in the martial world, only to suddenly withdraw and disappear from public view. Most of these Taoists had the appearance of immortals, with white eyebrows and beards, except for two who looked as young as Owen. These two must have also reached the Brewing Pill stage.

Although any one of these Taoists could be considered an innate master in the martial world, and even in the cultivation world their abilities were impressive, Henry Bolton still shook his head inwardly. He was dissatisfied that most of these Taoists, already over two hundred years old, were still stuck at the ‘Qi’ stage. Yet he didn’t consider how few could be as lucky as he was—not only gifted, but also raised in a valley filled with immortal energy, eating all kinds of rare spiritual herbs as if they were ordinary food. Even more astonishing, he had been personally taught for a full hundred years by George Bolton, a master of the Void-breaking stage. It would be hard not to become a great master under such circumstances!

In stark contrast to Henry Bolton’s thoughts, these old Taoists were all amazed by him, for they could not see through Henry Bolton’s cultivation, just as they could not see through Owen’s. This meant that the Taoist before them must have reached the Brewing Pill stage. The Brewing Pill stage—what an extraordinary level! It was the same realm as Owen and two others. For these old Taoists, being able to enter the ‘Pill’ stage, even just the initial Brewing Pill stage, would be enough to satisfy them. As for the Nascent Soul stage, that was beyond their wildest dreams, for it was said that only the founder George Bolton had ever reached that level in the entire Wudang Sect, and even that was just a legend. Owen was even more astonished, for he found that even he could not discern the depth of this young, plain-looking Taoist before him. The man seemed as unfathomable as the sea, as lofty as a great mountain. Generally, only when someone’s cultivation was two levels higher than one’s own would it be impossible to see through them. Since Owen was already at the mid-Brewing Pill stage and still could not see through Henry Bolton’s realm, he estimated that the person before him had at least reached the initial Condensing Pill stage.

At this moment, Henry Bolton had already withdrawn the aura he had just projected, and the two young Taoists who had collapsed on the ground finally regained their senses. Seeing that all the elders had come out into the hall, although the earlier events still left them shaken, with so many senior masters present, they finally calmed down, hurriedly got up from the ground, and stood beside the old Taoists. Just as they were about to report the situation to the elders, they saw Henry Bolton still looking calm and collected, smiling as he nodded to Owen and said, “You must be Owen, right?”

“How dare you! Do you think you can just call our Grandmaster’s name so casually?” Seeing so many elders present, and recalling his own embarrassing display earlier, the chubby Taoist blustered, completely forgetting that with so many elders here, it was not his place to speak.

“Logan, do not be rude!” Owen rebuked the chubby Taoist lightly. Only then did the Taoist called Logan remember his place and hurriedly retreated, mumbling apologies.

“May I ask how I should address this fellow Taoist?” As soon as he finished speaking, Owen was stunned, for he had seen the Universe Ring on Henry Bolton’s thumb. In fact, ever since entering Yuzhen Palace, Henry Bolton had deliberately made the Universe Ring visible, but how could those secular disciples recognize this supreme treasure of the Wudang Sect?

The fact that the secular disciples did not recognize it did not mean that Owen and the others did not. On the contrary, they were extremely familiar with the Universe Ring. From the day they stepped from the acquired to the innate stage—truly entering the world of cultivation—their masters had solemnly told them that the Universe Ring was the highest artifact of the Wudang Sect. Only the one who possessed the Universe Ring was the true head of Wudang, a position entirely different from the one shown to the world. However, it was said that the Universe Ring had never been passed down, always remaining on George Bolton’s hand. Yet now, it had appeared, worn on the thumb of a complete stranger. But this did not diminish the authority of the Universe Ring. All the old Taoists, including Owen, immediately knelt down in unison. Only the two young Taoists, not understanding what was happening, stood there dumbfounded, but quickly came to their senses and knelt as well. After all, if even the founder and all the elders were kneeling, how could they dare remain standing?

Chapter Six: George Bolton’s Disciple! Immortal Pill!