Chapter 36 Part 1

The Spirit Boat traveled through the clouds for a day and a night.

On the second day, as dawn broke, the morning light pierced the clouds and sprinkled golden radiance throughout the Spirit Boat’s cabin.

“Yunzhi! Look outside, quick!”

Fang Tianxin shook Lian Yunzhi awake with all his might, pointing straight out the window with one hand. His excited face glowed brilliantly in the rosy dawn light.

Lian Yunzhi rubbed his eyes and sat up, then looked in the direction Fang Tianxin pointed. He froze.

He saw the Heavenly Palace built atop the mountain peak, shrouded in swirling clouds and mists, with spiritual birds flying everywhere. Countless cultivators either flew on swords or rode cranes, chatting and laughing as they shuttled through the clouds.

He heard the long tolling of bells, ethereal and far-reaching, parting the clouds to slowly reveal the full splendor of the Heavenly Palace.

Glazed tiles, white jade roofing, walls covered in gold leaf, spiritual water encircling the palaces. Palace after palace stood upon the mountaintops, stretching endlessly for tens of thousands of li.

“…Is this the Immortal Realm?” Fang Tianxin murmured.

Fu Qing chuckled lightly. “This is our sect.”

Fang Tianxin’s eyes widened instantly, his voice trembling. “You once said I was the Sect Leader’s Son—of this sect’s Sect Leader?!”

Fu Qing nodded, but to avoid disappointing Fang Tianxin later, he added, “You’re not the only son. You have three older brothers above you.”

Fang Tianxin felt no disappointment at all. What were three older brothers? In the Fang Family of Xiaoze State, his father loved taking concubines, and his siblings numbered thirteen in total, yet none of that had ever hindered his lavish spending. He stared blankly out the window, utterly captivated by the unprecedented spectacle before him.

“What is your sect called?” Lian Yunzhi asked.

Fu Qing smiled modestly and replied, “Lin Xian Sect.”

Lian Yunzhi whipped his head around.

“Lin Xian Sect?!” Fang Tianxin was instantly drawn in as well. He turned his head too, his voice overly fervent with excitement. “The Lin Xian Sect from outside Xiaoze State?!”

Fu Qing knew what Fang Tianxin meant. He shook his head with a smile. “Yes and no. The ‘Lin Xian Sect’ there was fabricated based on our Lin Xian Sect, but aside from the name and history, they share nothing in common. That Lin Xian Sect combined isn’t even as large as one of our branch halls. Their sect architecture is so shabby it doesn’t measure up to a small sect. The funniest part is that they travel en masse not on Spirit Boats but on large Flying Demon Beasts, just like that Qi Refining Bird in Xiaoze State… Tsk, one can only say the creator of the Illusion Realm had never seen the world—”

Fu Qing’s voice cut off abruptly, for he suddenly sensed a clear, unmistakable killing intent.

A chill ran down his spine. Slowly, ever so slowly, he turned his head.

Lian Yunzhi stared coldly at him, his pitch-black eyes devoid of any emotion.

Fu Qing: “…”

Fu Qing suddenly wanted to slap himself. How had he forgotten who constructed the Illusion Realm?

Fortunately, Lian Yunzhi did not truly intend to kill him. Once Fu Qing clamped his mouth shut, Lian Yunzhi shifted his gaze away and looked back toward the ever-approaching myriad Heavenly Palaces.

So this was the true Lin Xian Sect.

Lian Yunzhi said in the silence of his mind, to no one.

If Mu Cheng were here…

Lian Yunzhi thought.

He could mock him then.

Mu Cheng surely would not have been embarrassed. He would have looked out the window, eyes bright and curved in a smile, laughing beautifully.

.

The Spirit Boat’s destination was the main peak’s main hall where the Sect Leader resided. But when they reached the airspace above a low, flat mountain peak, a Blue-Clothed Cultivator blocked their path. “The Chief Disciple is currently sparring. Please go around.”

Fu Qing was puzzled. “Doesn’t the Martial Arena have barrier protections?”

The Blue-Clothed Cultivator lifted his chin arrogantly. “The barrier was set by a Void Refining Elder. It may not withstand the Chief Disciple’s full-powered strike.”

Fu Qing was astonished. “The Chief Disciple reached Void Refining? I’ve only been gone five years.”

The Blue-Clothed Cultivator choked, then said, “The Chief Disciple is still at Soul Transformation, but he has always been extraordinary. He could slay Soul Transformation cultivators even at Nascent Soul…”

Fu Qing raised a hand to stop him. “Fine, we’ll go around.”

As Fu Qing prepared to return to the cabin, Lian Yunzhi emerged from inside and immediately asked, “The Chief Disciple is the one with the Myriad Absorption Spiritual Root?”

The Blue-Clothed Cultivator bristled at Lian Yunzhi’s lack of respect and opened his mouth to scold, but upon seeing Lian Yunzhi’s Soul Transformation cultivation, he shut it again.

Fu Qing nodded and added, “His name is Ling Tian. Your cultivations are comparable, so you can address him as Fellow Daoist Ling in the future.”

Ling Tian?

Hah, what an obnoxious name, as if afraid others wouldn’t know he lorded over all, Heaven’s beloved child.

Lian Yunzhi sneered inwardly.

He asked, “Can we watch?”