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Yuan Heng sat cross-legged near the run-down temple’s main gates.
Traces of his aura emanated from him, startling and dispersing the beasts and insects in the nearby stretch of mountain.
As a result, the area around the temple seemed extraordinarily tranquil.
Hm? Suddenly, the meditating Yuan Heng opened his eyes and gazed into the distant night sky.
Deep within the inky darkness of the dome and heaven, a streak of crystalline light descended and gradually outlined a mysterious ice flower.
This…!  Yuan Heng shot to his feet.
“Don’t panic. It’s just a spatial seal,” said Su Yi calmly.
Yuan Heng turned to look and saw Su Yi standing there, although he wasn’t sure when he’d gotten there. His hands were behind his back, and he was gazing up into the distant night sky.
The disturbance startled Yue Shichan, Ge Qian, and Bai Wenqing out of their meditation as well. All of them rose and walked over.
“Brother Su, don’t tell me that’s a…” The look on Yue Shichan’s delicate face shifted.
“That’s right. It’s the person who tried to lead you away last time,” said Su Yi. He looked at Yue Shichan. “Have you reached a decision?”
“I….” Yue Shichan hesitated, her starry eyes flickering with uncertainty.
When he saw how conflicted and hesitant she looked, Su Yi couldn’t help but take pity on her. “It won’t be too late to decide after we’ve learned more about them. You just need to remember that I’ll stand by your side no matter what.”
Yue Shichan’s lips parted as if to speak, but in the end, she merely said, “Mm.”
Su Yi looked back up at the night sky. This time, he didn’t interfere.
When the flower of radiant, crystalline ice bloomed, it surged with misty light, which silently outlined a ten-foot-tall illusory gate.
Spatial ripples appeared around it, and it emanated a startling and inscrutable presence.
Ge Qian and the others were visibly astonished.
This was their first time seeing such a tunnel between worlds. Both the sheer grandeur of it and its aura seemed like a miracle.
“This is most likely the work of a Profound Serenity Realm Emperor. A Profound Illumination Realm Emperor could accomplish the same feat with the help of a sacrificial altar, but the resulting spatial tunnel wouldn’t be this stable,” Su Yi pondered out loud. “It seems that whoever left that imprint in Yue Shichan’s soul has quite the extraordinary cultivation.”
The Profound Dao, also known as the Imperial Realm, was divided into three realms: Profound Illumination, Profound Serenity, and Profound Unity.
In the Nine Provinces of the Wilds, Profound Illumination Emperors were already strong enough to lead first-rate orthodoxies. They were mighty and influential, and their prestige intimidated the masses.
Profound Serenity Emperors were already rarely seen walking the world. Most lived in remote areas, and they seldom left. A single casual instance of secluded cultivation could last for hundreds of years, or sometimes even thousands.
Search bit.ly/3iBfjkV for the original.
Such experts were typically the pillars of top-level orthodoxies, and although they paid no heed to the sect’s affairs, they kept their external enemies in check.
As for the Profound Unity Realm…
It was also called the Imperial Apex Realm. Such experts stood at the very pinnacle of the Wilds; they were towering figures even among Emperors! Every one of them was like a living fossil of the Grand Dao. They possessed near omnipotent power, and their might could suppress the heavens themselves.
Such experts were the rarest of all.
In his past life, Su Yi was revered as the Swordmaster of Abstruse Force, the Master of Ten Thousand Daos. He single-handedly suppressed the Nine Provinces and reigned supreme at the pinnacle of the Profound Dao, presiding over the masses.
Even other old-timers of the Imperial Apex Realm could only lower their heads and avert their gazes before him!
A Profound Serenity Realm expert was now using a spatial seal to create a spatial tunnel to the Azure Continent. Even if he’d used a far more unbelievable level of power, how could he possibly intimidate Su Yi?
Suddenly, the sound of footsteps emanated from deep within the spatial tunnel hovering in the night sky.
Ge Qian and the others’ hearts clenched.
Before they could react, there was a flash of divine light, and a slender, graceful figure emerged from the spatial tunnel.
As she appeared in the sky, sparks scattered, and misty light permeated the air, illuminating the darkness.
For a moment, Ge Qian, Yuan Heng, and Bai Wenqing stopped breathing. Their bodies tensed in the face of the pressure bearing down on them, and their expressions changed.
She’s so strong!
The slender, graceful figure belonged to a youthful-looking woman in a long, dark green dress. Her long hair was tied up, revealing her snowy neck, and her teeth were bright as pearls. She was a stand-out beauty.
A sheathed scabbard hung from her squeezable waist, and misty light flowed around her. Her aura was like a sharp sword cutting through the air, forceful and intimidating.
“A Spiritual Incarnation Realm sword cultivator.” Su Yi wasn’t at all surprised; the spatial tunnels formed by spatial seals couldn’t bear the power of an Emperor. Should one enter, the tunnel would collapse.
As soon as the young woman in dark green appeared, her eyes flashed like lightning as she locked onto Su Yi and company’s location.
His companions felt as if someone were holding a sword to their throats, and their hair stood on end.
It wasn’t that her gaze was overly terrifying; her majestic aura was just that forceful and imposing.
Only Su Yi remained calm. It didn’t influence him in the slightest.
However, his brow furrowed slightly. This dimension-hopping young woman made no attempt to restrain her aura at all. This was a bit too overbearing!
When the woman in green saw Yue Shichan, her eyes lit up with delight, and she bowed, still standing in midair.
“This servant is called Qing Shuang. I’ve come to lead you back home, young mistress.”
It was just one sentence, but it left Ge Qian and the others dumbstruck. The terrifying, majestic woman who crossed dimensions to come here is actually just a servant!?
Furthermore, she’s calling Miss Shichan… ‘young mistress’?
What’s going on?
“Young mistress?” exclaimed Yue Shichan. This caught her off guard too.
The beautiful young woman who called herself Qing Shuang maintained her bow as she said softly, “Young mistress, His Lordship has already anticipated that you’d have countless questions. So long as you return with me, he’ll answer each and every one personally.”
Yue Shichan found this rather absurd. She instinctively asked, “You… Are you sure you have the right person?”
Qing Shuang looked up at her and asked, “Young mistress, is there an imprint on your soul?”
Yue Shichan nodded.
“That’s the imprint His Lordship placed there after you were born. It contains a trace of his will,” said Qing Shuang. “That’s why he could sense your presence as soon as he used a spatial seal to open a spatial tunnel.”
“Is that so…?” Yue Shichan’s beautiful face filled with uncertainty. Qing Shuang’s answer was in perfect alignment with Su Yi’s earlier explanation.
This undoubtedly proved the accuracy of Su Yi’s deductions.
The other party… really was almost certainly here to lead her away!
Yue Shicihan took a deep breath and repressed her turbulent emotions. “Who is this ‘lordship’ you speak of?”
Qing Shuang’s expression instantly filled with reverence. “Your father, His Excellency the Ash Night Sword Emperor.”
The Ash Night Sword Emperor?
Ge Qian and the others were beside themselves with astonishment.
Who’d have thought that Yue Shichan’s father was almost certainly an Imperial Realm expert?
Su Yi, however, furrowed his brow. He was a bit confused.
He already had some understanding of the factions of the Azure Continent of thirty thousand years prior.
For instance, he knew who the Nine Emperors of the Azure were, and he knew how many top orthodoxies there were….
However, he’d never heard the name “the Ash Night Sword Emperor” before.
There were two possibilities. Either his understanding of the world thirty thousand years ago was limited, or the Ash Night Sword Emperor hadn’t proven his Dao and reached the Imperial Realm on the Azure Continent.
“Hah? I needed an outsider to tell me who my father was. How… How ridiculous…” said Yue Shichan with an air of self-mockery.
The icy and aloof woman had forgotten herself, which was rare for her; she was obviously agitated.
Qing Shuang whispered, “Young mistress, the reasons behind this include indescribable hardships. Had there been any other choice, His Lordship… could never have beared to be apart from you, his own flesh and blood.”
Yue Shichan fell silent.
How could she fail to realize that there was a story behind all this?
It was just that she’d grown accustomed to solitude from a young age, and she was used to acting on her own, wandering the world as an aimless drifter. She’d never even considered the possibility that she might still have relatives out there.
Hearing about this now, how… how could she not feel agitated and emotional?
Did she feel wronged?
Not particularly.
Was she angry?
It wasn’t that either.
She just couldn’t accept it all so quickly, and she felt a bit put off by it.
Qing Shuang said softly, “Young Mistress, actually, not long ago, His Lordship used a secret art to excavate a spatial tunnel in hopes of reuniting with you. Who’d have thought that a powerful existence would intervene and destroy it? That’s what led to the delay, and why I only made it here now.”
Yue Shichan remained silent.
This left Qing Shuang a bit frantic. “Young Mistress, the spatial tunnel will remain stable for less than ten minutes. Please, come back with me. When you see His Lordship, I trust that he’ll resolve all your confusion.”
Yue Shichan suddenly looked up, and her starry eyes bore into Qing Shuang. “What if I don’t want to go with you?”
Qing Shuang fell briefly silent. Then, she said apologetically, “In that case, I have no choice but to personally take you away.”
Although she sounded apologetic, her attitude left no room for argument!
Su Yi had remained a bystander all this time, but when he heard that, he looked at Yue Shichan. “Have you really decided not to leave?”
Yue Shichan paused, looking dazed and bewildered. “I… I really don’t know what I should do.”
Su Yi’s gaze shone with pity. “I said it earlier: if you don’t want to leave, no one in this world can make you. If—”
He’d only just said this when Qing Shuang coldly interrupted him. She said solemnly, “My young friend, please mind your tongue. Don’t do anything to ruin this grand occasion. If you do, don’t blame me for my poor manners!”
When she faced Su Yi, her disposition changed, becoming sharper and more imposing.
In truth, when she first arrived, she merely swept her gaze across Su Yi and his companions before disregarding them. She’d never concerned herself with them at all.
However, when she saw that Su Yi seemed intent on getting involved, she was instantly displeased. He’s a mere Gathering Stars Realm cultivator, but he doesn’t know his place. He truly overestimates himself!
“Poor manners?” Su Yi laughed. “So long as I’m here, never mind you; not even your master could take Miss Shichan away without her consent. If you don’t believe me, you’re welcome to try me.”
His tone was casually and utterly contemptuous.
His overbearing attitude left Qing Shuang dazed. She almost suspected she’d misheard.
Since when did Gathering Stars cultivators dare behave so impudently?
Even disregarding her background, her cultivation alone was enough to instill awe and reverence in any Origin Dao cultivator!
The disdain in Su Yi’s tone felt like an affront to her dignity, a provocation.
Of course, if that were all it was, Qing Shuang would have disdained taking him to task.
However, it seemed he disregarded even her master. That, Qing Shuang couldn’t tolerate.
“How lofty is His Lordship? Who is an insignificant figure like you to demean him? You say want to try me? Fine!” Qing Shuang said coldly, her forceful aura soaring into the heavens.