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On board the treasure ship.
The charming, lavishly-dressed woman turned and rejoined the banquet.
The banquet hall was packed with distinguished guests, including a range of ages and both men and women. These were cultivators of the Great Chu’s various prominent factions. Without exception, they were lofty existences that mundane martial artists could only gaze upon from afar.
The lavishly-dressed woman sat upright at the head of the table.
“Madam Miaohua, did you discover something just now?” laughed a graying elder in ink-black robes.
The others all looked over as well.
Earlier, Madam Miaohua suddenly rose, then proceeded to the ship’s railing to gaze at a distant black awning boat. This scene had already attracted quite a bit of attention.
The woman he called “Madam Miaohua” was charming, beautiful, and lavishly dressed. She laughed, “Now that you mention it, it’s rather interesting. There were two cultivators on that black awning boat that just passed, and one of them was a yao."
A yao cultivator!
Everyone in attendance was visibly surprised.
The graying, dark-robed elder’s eyes flashed. “If he’s truly a yao cultivator, he cannot possibly hail from our Great Chu.”
Everyone nodded.
Three hundred years ago, the Great Chu’s thirteen factions of cultivators joined forces to issue a call for extermination. They ordered all of the nation’s cultivators to rise up and slay all yao cultivators within their borders. After almost a decade of hard work, the Great Chu’s yao cultivators had been almost entirely wiped out.
Here, yao were already practically extinct.
Yet now, a yao cultivator had appeared openly on Billowing Sky River, without even the awareness that he ought to hide his presence. They didn’t even need to think to know that he wasn’t local.
“Madam Miaohua, to the best of my knowledge, you detest yao cultivators and their ilk more than anyone. If you discovered one just now, why did you let him go?” asked a lean middle-aged man with jade robes and a wide belt.
Madam Miaohua pressed her lips into a smile. “In the past, the Great Chu’s yao cultivators ran amok, bringing ruin upon the nation. Everywhere you looked, black smoke and miasma filled the air. Thus, three hundred years ago, our forebears issued a call for extermination.
“Now, throughout the Great Chu’s borders, yao cultivators are practically extinct. I might detest yao cultivators and their ilk, but not enough to kill them without cause.”
She paused for a moment, then glanced at a nearby guest in Daoist robes. She smiled, “Besides, we have a guest from the Great Qi, Fellow Daoist Ling, in attendance. Fighting and killing would spoil the occasion.”
Were Su Yi and Yuan Heng here, they’d recognize the man in Daoist robes at a glance. This was none other than Ling Yunhe!
And the one seated beside Ling Yunhe was his young apprentice, Qing Ya.
Qing Ya couldn’t restrain her curiosity. “Senior, why do you hate yao cultivators?”
Madam Miaohua laughed. “My young friend, there’s just one thing you need to remember: other species cannot be trusted.”
Qing Ya shook her head. “Every living thing has a spirit, and regardless of whether we’re yao, ghost, or human, we’re all fellow cultivators striving for the Grand Dao. We can differentiate between right and wrong or good and evil, but we cannot classify anyone as superior or inferior.”
This declaration instantly put a damper on the banquet’s atmosphere.
In the eyes of the Great Chu’s cultivators, exterminating yao cultivators and their ilk was equivalent to protecting the populace from disaster. They were meting out justice on the heavens’ behalf; it was right and honorable, a matter of course.
Given the circumstances, Qing Ya’s words were displeasing to the ear.
Madam Miaohua’s painted eyebrows furrowed slightly.
Ling Yunhe laughed. “It’s my apprentice’s first time leaving the mountain to temper herself, and she doesn’t understand worldly affairs. If she offended you, I humbly request your magnanimity.”
Madam Miaohua broke into a charming smile. “How could I take offense?”
As soon as she said this, a warning bell rang out.
Madam Miaohua’s gaze was instantly serious, and she reached for the string of glittering silver bells hanging from her waist. Their surfaces were carved with numerous strange and inscrutable tokens, silver light flowed around them as they shook and rang nonstop.
When she saw this, she swept her gaze across the guests. “Everyone, I suspect an extremely powerful apparition has appeared on Billowing Sky River!”
The other cultivators in attendance were visibly flabbergasted.
This was just too strange. Encountering a yao cultivator tonight was surprising enough. Now there was a ghost out haunting too?
Madam Miaohua said, “This apparition provoked an unusual response from my Silver Heaven Bells. It’s surely extraordinary. Everyone, are you willing to investigate with me?”
The guests all agreed.
Madam Miaohua rose, then waved her sleeves. The Silver Heaven Bells shot through the air, as if sentient, and shot into the night.
She and the other cultivators flew after them.
They formed a dazzling streak of rising light amidst the relentless downpour, illuminating the river below as they arced into the distance, like a divine rainbow.
Ling Yunhe and Qing Ya went with them.
“Master, do all cultivators like slaying yao and ghosts?” asked Qing Ya.
Ling Yunhe shook head. “No, not at all. However, the cultivators of the Great Chu have an ancient blood feud with yao and ghost cultivators. Neither side can tolerate the other, and they cannot coexist. Even now, the cultivators of the Great Chu see exterminating yao and ghosts as a matter of course.”
“Ah, so that’s it!” Qing Ya seemed enlightened.






The night was dark and deep, and dark clouds surged and gathered overhead.
Su Yi stood on the peak of a mountain near the banks of Billowing Sky River, his hands behind his back as he stared up into the gathering tribulation clouds.
“This is your tribulation of metamorphosis,” he said. “Once you overcome it, you can condense a spiritual body, and you’ll be a true ghost cultivator.”
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A picturesque beauty in a red dress floated to his side. She looked utterly nervous and uncertain.
Earlier, while they were still in the black awning boat, Su Yi sensed a strange movement from within the Soul-Nurturing Gourd. He then learned that, during her cultivation, Qing Wan had sensed something: a tribulation targeting her was imminent.
Su Yi immediately realized that it was already time for Qing Wan to cast aside her ethereal form, break through, and undergo metamorphosis.
Her impending tribulation was the result of her imminent breakthrough and metamorphosis. She was about to break into the Origin Dao.
Thus, Su Yi immediately led Qing Wan to the mountaintop, where they began their preparations.
“Mystic Master, I’m not afraid of the tribulation, I’m just worried that
 If I fail, I
. I won’t be here to accompany you any longer,” Qing Wan said timidly. Her voice was soft and clear.
“I’m here. How could I possibly let anything happen to you?” Su Yi laughed dryly. “All you need to do is focus on your tribulation. No matter what happens, you don’t need to pay it any heed.”
This was just a teensy little tribulation of metamorphosis, that’s all. With Qing Wan’s foundations, she could effortlessly overcome it.
After all, Qing Wan’s soul body was incomparably rare and pure. Among ghosts, she had an extraordinary spirit root and an outstanding foundation.
Furthermore, she practiced the Ten Directions Asura Sutra, the ghost cultivator’s ultimate Daoist canon. Throughout their time together, she’d even had his personal guidance and instruction. How could a mere tribulation of metamorphosis threaten her?
“Mm!” Qing Wan nodded firmly, then took a deep breath. Her earlier nervousness and uncertainty vanished without a trace. That beautiful face, still slightly soft with baby fat, filled with calm determination.
Su Yi silently stepped back.
“Master, Miss Qing Wan’s tribulation of metamorphosis is way more terrifying than mine,” said Yuan Heng gravely.
The tribulation had yet to finish taking shape, but the air of impending calamity permeated heaven and earth. His heart shook.
“Indeed, this tribulation isn’t ordinary,” said Su Yi casually. “But it’s not overly heaven-defying either.”
Unlike the seemingly taboo power of the tribulation he encountered as he broke into the Grain Avoidance Realm, Qing Wan’s impending tribulation was still within the normal bounds.
Of course, in the eyes of the Azure Continent’s cultivators, her tribulation was still shocking and rare.
The tribulation clouds overhead grew increasingly dense and oppressive.
Suddenly, a streak of dazzling light shot over from the distant skies. It was headed right toward them.
It was a group of over twenty people, a grand and mighty processession.
When they saw Qing Wan preparing to undergo tribulation on the mountaintop, they burst into uproar.
“What a terrifying tribulation! Don’t tell me that’s an ancient, powerful ghost?”
“Interesting! That ghost wants to undergo its tribulation of metamorphosis!”
“Since when did such a mighty ghost haunt the banks of Billowing Sky River?”
“Who cares where she came from? A monster like her must be destroyed. We must remove her from this world!”
Their voices echoed through the air as they rapidly approached, forceful and aggressive.
When Yuan Heng saw them, his expression was instantly solemn. “Master, it’s the cultivators on that treasure ship we just passed!”
“Mm,” said Su Yi, just as calm as before. He turned and faced Qing Wan. “Remember what I said earlier. Focus on overcoming your tribulation. You needn’t concern yourself with anything else.”
These new arrivals initially stunned her, but when she heard Su Yi’s words, she felt as if she’d found her rock, and she instantly calmed down.
She whispered, “Mystic Master, if I
 If I successfully undergo metamorphosis, can I call you master too?”
Her eyelashes fluttered. It seemed she was embarrassed and uncertain, but also somewhat eager.
“You’re about to undergo tribulation. Why are you thinking about that now?” Su Yi couldn’t help but laugh. “Once you’ve successfully overcome your tribulation, you can call me whatever you please.”
Qing Wan instantly smiled, giving her beautiful little face a newfound charm. She nodded firmly. “Mm!”
Then, she turned around and gazed into the dome of heaven. Abundant, indomitable energy surged around her graceful figure, and her beautiful phoenix eyes were suddenly bright and profound.
As her dress swayed around her, she looked like she’d walked out of a painting. She was like an immortal amongst ghosts, and her disposition now seemed as cold and serene as snow.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
The approaching cultivators stopped and stood in the skies not far from the mountain, one by one. Their leader was none other than the lavishly-dressed, charming Madam Miaohua.
When she saw Su Yi and Yuan Heng, this Gathering Stars Realm expert of the Great Chu furrowed her painted brow. “It’s you?”
Practically simultaneously, Ling Yunhe and Qing Ya recognized them. Both were stunned.
“Master, they
.” Qing Ya opened her mouth to say something, only for Ling Yunhe to cut her off without so much as a shift in his expression.
He transmitted, “Don’t make our connection public. Let’s watch and see what happens.”
“Uh
.” Qing Ya’s bright eyes blinked, and she stared curiously up at the floating Qing Wan. She couldn’t help but widen her eyes in amazement.
Wah! What a pretty ghost!