“Mount Tianjian?” Dongbo Xueying’s heart stirred. Although the spatial deviation from the Hall Master of Inquiry’s ultra-long-distance teleportation was considerable, it still allowed him to roughly delineate the area. Within this range, there was a significant force known as ‘Mount Tianjian.’ The leader of this faction, the ‘Sect Master of Mount Tianjian,’ was a long-cultivated Unity realm expert. According to the intelligence of the Voidsky Palace, the Sect Master’s strength was likely at the fourth level of the Star Tower. Generally, passing the third level was already considered the pinnacle of the Unity realm, capable of slaughtering ordinary Unity realm experts en masse. Those who could pass the fourth level… unless they encountered an invincible Unity realm expert like the inner hall elders of the Voidsky Palace, they were undoubtedly regional overlords.
Thus, Mount Tianjian was recorded even in the Voidsky Palace’s intelligence.
Dongbo Xueying stood at the bow of the great ship and asked, “May I ask, in which direction lies the Rainbowcloud Marsh?”
The Rainbowcloud Marsh was also in this vicinity! Since the other party belonged to the Mount Tianjian faction, he couldn’t outright ask for the direction to Mount Tianjian.
“You don’t even know the location of the Rainbowcloud Marsh?” A white-haired elder beside the red-robed woman barked. “You’re a Unity realm expert—surely you must have a map of the surrounding area? Are you mocking us?”
As a high-ranking member of Mount Tianjian, he naturally had the authority to question.
Mount Tianjian was the dominant power in this region.
“I’ve been in seclusion for a long time and only recently broke through. I haven’t traveled much before, so I truly don’t know,” Dongbo Xueying replied with a smile. “Could you kindly point me in the direction of the Rainbowcloud Marsh?”
“Hmph.” The elder glared at Dongbo Xueying, clearly suspicious.
“Uncle Chuan, he’s just asking for directions,” the red-robed woman interjected with a laugh, pointing into the distance behind them. “The Rainbowcloud Marsh lies in that direction. An ordinary Unity realm expert can reach it within a month through void traversal.”
Dongbo Xueying nodded. “Thank you.”
With a whoosh, he vanished into thin air.
The red-robed woman stared blankly at the spot where the white-haired, silver-masked man had stood moments ago, now empty. “He really was just asking for directions?” she murmured.
The elder, equally puzzled, scanned their surroundings carefully. “Perhaps he truly is a newly ascended Unity realm expert who rarely ventured out before due to his low strength. That’s not unusual,” the red-robed woman said. “Let’s go. We’re almost at Mount Tianjian. It’s been a while since I last saw Father.”
Whoosh.
The great ship resumed its flight, soon plunging into the void and speeding away at an incredible velocity.
Dongbo Xueying reappeared in his original spot. “Hmm? The direction they’re heading must be Mount Tianjian,” he mused. Although the ship had entered the void, he could still clearly sense the traces left by its passage. “The red-robed woman didn’t lie about the direction to the Rainbowcloud Marsh.”
By referencing the position of the sun in the sky and the direction of the Rainbowcloud Marsh, Dongbo Xueying could determine his current location and, consequently, deduce the direction to Mount Tianjian.
The ship’s flight path… also pointed toward Mount Tianjian.
“To Mount Tianjian,” Dongbo Xueying decided.
“Mount Tianjian is nearly the strongest sect in this region. Its sect master is immensely powerful. I must find a way to confirm whether he is a follower of the two great cults,” Dongbo Xueying thought. If confirmed, those with soul imprints would be executed without mercy. However, verifying their identities was no easy task.
Soul imprints were usually concealed. Although the three Sacred Worlds had developed secret techniques to detect them, these techniques were exceedingly difficult to master. Even with Dongbo Xueying’s prodigious talent, it had taken him hundreds of millions of years within the Time Palace to learn them!
Detecting followers of the Mother Goddess was relatively easier.
Identifying followers of the Sacred Master in person was far more challenging. The Sacred Master’s methods were highly sophisticated, and the imprints he placed on his followers’ souls were nearly impossible to detect without completely sealing their powers and rendering them defenseless for a thorough soul examination.
…
The great ship traversed the void.
The red-robed woman stood on the deck, watching the distorted void around her with a smile. “We’re almost at Mount Tianjian.”
“The Sect Master will be overjoyed to hear of your successful breakthrough to Void God,” the elder beside her remarked.
“Yes,” the red-robed woman nodded.
Suddenly, the void ahead twisted violently, and a massive hand seized the ship, causing it to lurch to a halt.
“What’s happening?” The red-robed woman and the elder were startled, as were the guards around them.
If Dongbo Xueying’s interception had been gentle, this was outright brutal—the ship was forcibly dragged from the void back into the real world.
The ship hovered mid-air.
Ahead stood three figures, all at the Unity realm.
“The three elders of Blazing Flame Valley!” The elder paled and quickly transmitted a message to the red-robed woman. “For them to appear at the gates of Mount Tianjian bodes ill. When the time comes, flee immediately. I’ll hold them off.”
Aloud, he declared, “Elders, why do you intercept our ship from Mount Tianjian?”
“Hah! Soon, there will be no Mount Tianjian.”
“Who would have thought our alert formation would be triggered by the Sect Master’s precious daughter?”
“Capture her alive!”
The three elders of Blazing Flame Valley were delighted. Even as their voices echoed, a vast crimson net materialized, enveloping the ship and sealing the void entirely. Clearly, they were cunning—while speaking, they had already acted in secret!
The elder roared, transforming into a bolt of lightning that crashed into the net above. Yet, the fiery mesh held firm, unbroken by the strike.
“None of you will escape,” one of the elders sneered, opening his mouth to spew a billowing black mist. Unhindered by the net, the mist seeped through, coiling toward the red-robed woman with lightning speed, intent on capturing her.
The elder, now a lightning bolt, clashed with the mist but struggled to repel it.
“How could this be?” The red-robed woman’s heart filled with dread. The elders’ words—’Soon, there will be no Mount Tianjian’—and the fact that they had set up an alert formation so close to Mount Tianjian suggested dire circumstances within the sect.
The lightning and mist wrestled, but the mist gained the upper hand, inching closer to the red-robed woman.
Then—
“Swish!”
A brilliant sword light split the sky, tearing through the crimson net and dispersing the black mist. The profound mysteries within the light effortlessly annihilated the mist.
The sky cleared.
A white-haired, white-robed man wearing a mask stepped out of the void, gazing at the three elders.
“It’s him?” The red-robed woman, the elder, and the guards stared in astonishment at the man who had earlier asked for directions.
“We—we are elders of Blazing Flame Valley,” the three stammered, feeling an invisible pressure constricting the void around them. The might of that single sword stroke had terrified them. They knew this man was at least a peak Unity realm expert, far beyond their ability to resist.
“Please kill them! They are mortal enemies of Mount Tianjian!” the elder on the ship urged.
Indeed, Mount Tianjian and Blazing Flame Valley were sworn foes.
“Spare us! We meant no offense, Senior,” the three elders pleaded, their tones humble. Another strike like that would mean their deaths.
“Hand over all your treasures, and I’ll spare your lives,” Dongbo Xueying said.
The elders hesitated only briefly before hastily producing their possessions—storage rings, weapons, even their robes, conjured anew from void divine power.
“Everything is here. We’ve surrendered all our treasures,” they said frantically. Life was worth more than material goods.
“Go,” Dongbo Xueying said, amused by their compliance. With a wave, he collected the items.
Mount Tianjian and Blazing Flame Valley were mortal enemies?
That had nothing to do with him!
He’d repaid their directions by saving them. As for their feud, he couldn’t care less! Only followers of the two great cults or true fiends warranted his blade. Those who sought his death would meet it. Ordinary conflicts? Unless they involved him, they were none of his concern.
“Treasures are what matter,” Dongbo Xueying mused with a faint smile. Upon arriving in the Nine Clouds Continent, he’d resolved to amass as many treasures as possible.
Tai Sui Yellow Amulet Paper FuLu Taoist Love Talisman Traditional Chinese Spiritual Charm Attracting Love Protecting Marriage