The Xuanming Sect has a thousand-year-long history, with over a thousand disciples under its banner, making it far more prestigious than the Chicheng Immortal Sect. The leader of the Xuanming Sect, Matthew Harris, is of the same generation as the grandmaster of the Chicheng Sect, John Brooks's master’s master. His magical powers are vast and unfathomable, making him one of the top figures in the Southern Toad Continent. Although the Chicheng Immortal Sect’s founder, John Brooks, inherited the true teachings of the Chicheng lineage and established his own sect, it still cannot compare to the deep foundation of a thousand-year-old sect like the Xuanming Sect. While the Chicheng Immortal Sect, thanks to John Brooks's astonishing power, is not ranked last among the Seven Great Sword Immortal Sects, it is still only considered middle-tier.

Among the Seven Great Sword Immortal Sects, the Lingqiao Immortal Sect is hailed as the number one orthodox sect in the world of the mystic arts. Below Lingqiao are the Minghe Sword Sect and Cuiwei Immortal Sect, followed by the Hidden Immortal School, and only then does the Chicheng Immortal Sect come into play. The Xuanming Sect, however, is the undisputed number one demonic sect, its strength on par with the Lingqiao Immortal Sect, its notorious power intimidating the world. Although Matthew Harris is not the number one figure among the demonic sects, he is certainly among the top three, and his reputation far surpasses that of John Brooks.

Recalling this information, Brian White immediately drew a sharp breath, exclaiming inwardly, “So the Five Lusts Venerable is a descendant of the Xuanming Sect, a disciple of the Xuanming Patriarch Matthew Harris! No wonder that Five Lusts scoundrel spoke with such arrogance, acted so ruthlessly, and was so heartless and unscrupulous. For a demonic sect of this scale, committing evil is routine, and killing comes as easily as breathing. They truly deserve to be wiped out for the sake of justice, their entire sect exterminated, not a chicken or dog left alive—they simply shouldn’t exist in this world. But since I’m not strong enough yet, I’ll let this sect live a little longer. Once I master invincible swordsmanship, I will surely carry out justice on behalf of the heavens.”

Although the Xuanming Sect is famous, it does not intimidate Brian White. He is bold to the extreme; otherwise, he could never have accomplished something like “single-handedly slaughtering the World Society, forcing Dugu Qiuwu to never dare enter this game again.” Not only does he feel no regret for killing the physical bodies of the Jade Plume Fairy and the Five Lusts Venerable, he is even thinking about how to wipe out the entire Xuanming Sect to eliminate future threats.

The Xuanming Sect is renowned for refining magical treasures, but each treasure takes at least several hundred years, sometimes thousands, to complete. Therefore, unlike the disciples of the Chicheng Immortal Sect who focus solely on secluded cultivation, Xuanming disciples, once they have some cultivation, often go out to travel and collect materials for refining magical artifacts. As these disciples progress in their cultivation, their natal magical artifacts become increasingly powerful, and they naturally become dominant figures in their regions. However, ordinary Xuanming disciples cannot carry a copy of the Nineteen Xuanming Chapters with them; they are not even allowed to glimpse the full text. At most, they receive the last few chapters’ techniques, and only the most powerful techniques are passed down to true disciples.

The Five Lusts Venerable’s real name is William Harris, the direct grandson of the Xuanming Patriarch Matthew Harris, which is why he received such special treatment—his parents secretly passed him this supreme Daoist manual and allowed him to take it with him when he left the sect. Because of his noble status, the Five Lusts Venerable easily made many connections while traveling outside the Xuanming Sect. Coupled with his good luck and several fortuitous encounters, he managed to forge the embryos of eight magical artifacts. He chose one flying sword as his natal artifact, which he used to steal elixirs from Jietian Peak. The other seven, still in the process of being refined, were kept in his magical pouch and have now all fallen into Brian White's hands, benefiting another.

Brian White was unaware of these inside stories or the Five Lusts Venerable’s impressive background, so he remained quite at ease. Of course, even if he had known about the Five Lusts Venerable’s origins, Brian White would not have been particularly nervous. After reading the Xuanming Manual, he learned the names and uses of the Five Lusts Venerable’s seven magical treasures, which made him quite pleased.

The protective black iron ring is called the Dual Phase Ring, the strongest defensive treasure in the Xuanming Manual. When fully refined, the Dual Phase Ring can contain a miniature universe of dual phase reality and illusion, serving not only as protection but also to capture enemy flying swords and magical treasures. However, the Five Lusts Venerable preferred sword-type artifacts, so he did not choose the Dual Phase Ring as his natal artifact, treating it as an ordinary magical item. Lacking sufficient magical power, he had not refined the Dual Phase Ring to the necessary level. Not to mention the miniature universe, even its defensive power was inadequate, which is why Brian White was able to break through the Dual Phase Ring with a single sword strike and kill his physical body outright.

From the Xuanming Manual, Brian White also learned that the Dual Phase Ring requires seventy-two layers of restrictions. With each layer completed, its power doubles. Only when all seventy-two layers are complete can it open up the miniature universe of dual phase reality and illusion. When all seventy-two layers are refined as one, the Dual Phase Ring can truly be called a magical treasure; for now, it is merely an embryo of a magical treasure, which cultivators in the world of Jambudvipa refer to as a magical artifact.

The Five Lusts Venerable’s Dual Phase Ring had only just reached three layers of restrictions, still far from completion. It could only release a ring of dual phase black light, transforming the ring into a circle of black light to protect its user. Needless to say, the miniature universe was out of reach. If it had been refined to seven or eight layers, the dual phase black light could have absorbed and redirected force, and even captured flying swords and magical artifacts. With the poor quality of David Stone’s flying sword, even with Brian White’s superior swordsmanship, it would not have been so easy to break through the Dual Phase Ring’s defense.