499 - A Sect Leader’s Ascension

Chapter 499: Arrival of the Nascent Souls In the dim light of the Star-Picking Platform, the body formed of blue smoke concealed its expression, but the Nascent Soul cultivators present, sensing the overbearing killing intent around them, knew that matters were unlikely to end well. The Star-Picking Pavilion's Nascent Soul was an elderly man with a gaunt appearance and two streaks of white in his hair. Having spent considerable time here, Qin Changfeng knew that this man was called Sikong Zhou, reputed for his lack of bloodthirsty behavior. With urgency, Qin Changfeng pulled Nangong Yanran into a kneeling position and pleaded loudly, "Senior, please hear us out. We were framed and used. The Buddhist beads that kidnapped Jia Changgen were a gift from Ancestor Gui of Jixia City. We had no knowledge of the underlying schemes! Jia Changgen is much more than a mere acquaintance to me; I would never harm him!" Miaoqing also knelt, recounting the events from receiving the wooden token for the Jixia trial to Jia Changgen's capture by the Buddhist beads, all the while gently tugging at Chu Wen's sleeve, urging for his compliance. But Chu Wen refused to kneel to a Nascent Soul from Baishan. Standing resolute with his sword, he remained protective of the three, pridefully facing Sikong Zhou with unwavering defiance. "Ah! All is lost!" Sikong Zhou seemed uninterested in their explanations, murmuring repeatedly. With a single hand clenched into a claw, he struck down upon the four. Within the palm of his hand seemed to swirl a starry sky, giving the illusion of a collapsing world. "Fall!" He bellowed, twisting his palm. The power of the dual starry paths collided around them, forcing Qin Changfeng, Nangong Yanran, and Miaoqing to succumb, while Chu Wen's sword sheath gleamed with seven radiant jewels, defiantly resisting the Nascent Soul's might. Though he was forced to one knee, coughing up blood, his mind remained clear. Sikong Zhou’s face reddened with exertion, and he pressed down harder, shouting once more, "Fall!" Yet Chu Wen, though nearly blood-soaked from the repeated attempts, finally succumbed and fainted. Seeing that the elder had not taken their lives, the Head of the Star-Picking Pavilion, grasping a bronze oil lamp, understood his ancestor's intent and ordered the four detained in separate cells. He pondered, "If Miaoqing's words hold true, why would Gui Huasheng need such roundabout means to capture a young Foundation Establishment cultivator from our home? Surely, Jixia City is not short of prodigies?" "Don't ask about it." Sikong Zhou impatiently dismissed the question with a wave. "Order all disciples that unless necessary, no one is to leave Star-Picking City. Allow guests studying with us to leave if they wish, without hindrance. Suspend further admissions from outside for both studies and entrance." The pavilion head was alarmed, "But excluding those born within, we only accept star-tethered cultivators. Closing the door to outsiders ensures our decline within a century!" "Just do it. Bide your time and wait for changes in the world..." Sikong Zhou sighed repeatedly, "Those others surely have all come out by now. I must return at once, or the situation will deteriorate!" "What about those four?" the pavilion head hurriedly inquired. Pausing near the bronze lamp, Sikong Zhou responded, "Don't trouble them further. Just take some symbolic recompense from their families and then release them." His smoky figure slowly dissipated. "Should external forces invade Baishan in force, stay low and wait for them to fight amongst themselves. Do not overestimate our strength because of me." The echoes lingered as the Star-Picking Pavilion members prostrated themselves toward Baishan, sending him off as they set about their tasks. ... At the Hall of the Hehuan Sect, the smokey silhouettes of two Nascent Soul cultivators appeared before Zhong Xingjun and others. "Welcome, forebears!" The hall was filled with people, their faces aglow with joy, kneeling in reverent greeting. Though these Nascent Soul cultivators appeared only in their thirties, they were actually famed from much earlier times. The woman among them, smilingly raised her palm, helping the congregation rise, "Get up." "Heh, old Sikong doesn't follow his own rules, so my husband and I just broke loose too..." The man’s gentle features contrasted with his coarse words, "How has home been lately?" he inquired. Zhong Xingjun succinctly recounted the intrigues of the Baishan civil war. The man considered for a moment, then praised, "You're handling it quite well, I have no further suggestions." Zhong Xingjun coquettishly declared her unworthiness. Thus followed a celebratory feast, with the elders seated at prestige as dancers, scarcely covered, performed increasing provocative and licentious dances. As the atmosphere heated, many pairs of cultivators unabashedly merged in an unabashed ritual gathering. In such revelry, the Nascent Soul couple laughed heartily, exchanging banter even about their own intimate matters, creating a lively, harmonious atmosphere within the sect. At one point, the woman frowned, "Sikong went back." "Don't mind him, let’s just enjoy our merriment today," her companion replied. ... In the City Lord’s mansion of Bomu City, Chai Ping's smoky silhouette sat high, exuding a gloomy demeanor, while Chai Yi and other Golden Core cultivators knelt on the floor. "Is the situation under control with Brother's injuries still severe?" Chai Ping asked without beckoning them to rise. "Yes." Chai Yi straightened his back, retrieved a long scroll from his robes, and began to read, "Though we were involved throughout the Baishan conflict, our losses were minor, notably gaining much from the Dan Alliance. Our numbers of cultivators are steadily increasing across all realms, with several promising individuals…” "...Recently, we also uncovered and thwarted an infiltration attempt by the Chu Qin Sect, giving Qi Xiu a significant lesson." Descriptions of affairs great and small poured forth from Chai Yi’s lips, leaving Chai Ping at a loss to discern key matters from trivial ones. Recognizing it as Chai Yi's tactic to baffle him—given an old rift between them—Chai Ping opted to react with indifference, recognizing his lack of interest in administration. Sensing Sikong Zhou's return to the mountain, he dismissed them, "I won't bother with these trivialities. Make sure you consult the other two city lords, and strategize well." With that, he vanished into his bronze oil lamp. Besides the gloomy cloud over the Star-Picking Pavilion, the atmosphere in the Water Alliance was equally tense. Their Nascent Soul ancestor appeared on a mountain near Bihu Lake. A white-haired elder looked angrily over the bustling waters below, lamenting, “They misled me! They misled me!” Only Shui Lingyi was present, instantly kneeling with tears, "Ancestor, please calm your anger. It's my oversight in deployment that has led to today’s predicament!" "Sigh!" The elder personally lifted her, sharing her sorrow, "With fate as it is, what power do you have against it?" he lamented further, "Among all Baishan’s Nascent Souls, I'm the eldest. In three hundred years, when my life ends, your days will be harder still!" Facing an unresolvable situation, Shui Lingyi tried to console him, cautiously asking, "Isn’t our prodigious brother already advancing? How long until he can further progress?" “Sigh!” The elder’s grief deepened, "He failed to form a nascent soul, and has already left us." A buzz filled Shui Lingyi's head, the world around her spinning almost into oblivion. ... As the Nascent Souls of Baishan returned home, elsewhere, the Buddhist bead carrying Jia Changgen soared above the wind currents, darting northwest toward Jixia City, moving even faster than most Nascent Soul flights, making it impossible to stop. However, upon reaching the deathly aura of the Death Swamp, an unexpected change occurred. Up ahead, the long-peaceful Death Swamp suddenly roiled with turbulence, waves rising, and black sludge surging with wailing cries, forming countless thick, vine-like tendrils that stood like a barrier, penetrating the sky itself, blocking the Buddhist bead’s advance. A series of muffled, thunderous crashes echoed as the bead battered its way through these black marsh vines, persisting yet slowing. From Jixia City's direction, streaks of lightning-fast divine light approached, bringing a deafening storm in their wake, channeling the transformative powers of Gui Zheng. From the same area, the dragon of soothing wood appeared, hovering at the edge, craning its head curiously toward this spectacle. Within the depths of Qiyun Mountains, from a certain cave came a deep sigh, soon followed by a translucent silhouette of a towering thousand-zhang giant in the sky above—a figure exuding a divine aura that compelled all beings to worship. "I'll be back shortly." The giant murmured downward, as if instructing someone, before stepping south with ease that made thousands of miles seem a casual stroll, arriving before the bead even as it was still fiercely resisting. His presence alone calmed the Death Swamp to tranquility, as if nothing ever transpired. "You were too careless." Without a move, the giant disintegrated the Buddhist bead into powder, advising the groggy Jia Changgen with an oddly familial admonishment. Seeing the giant, Jia Changgen didn’t panic, but rather showed a hint of bitterness, turning his head away, "I am no longer myself," he declared coldly. "Haha, yes, yes, you are no longer you, and I am no longer I," the giant laughed heartily. "You’re from the Celestial Peak..." Far away, across vast distances, the divine essence of transformation pulled with a palpable tension. Gui Zheng hesitated, no longer daring to advance. Midway through a thunderous shout, he faltered with uncertainty, "You dare break the rules!?" His voice was a mix of disbelief and concern. "Have the Realm Lord come find me; I’ll give an explanation," the giant replied with indifference, a sharp glint suddenly appearing in his eyes. "Oh? You came in your true form..." "Dare you make a move against me!?" When Gui Zheng had uttered the first word of that sentence, he was still standing his ground. By the time he finished speaking, he had already retreated countless miles, nearly scurrying back to Jixia City. Gui Zheng, frightened off by a mere mention, fled as fast as he could. At some point, the dragon of soothing wood also vanished without a trace. The giant shook his head, apparently uninterested in pursuing the matter. He turned his gaze back to Jia Changgen, held in his palm. "Your cover being blown prematurely means you can't return now." He pondered briefly. "Though it slightly disrupts my plans, it hardly matters. Perhaps you could stay with the old fox for a while. What do you think?" "Heh." Jia Changgen sneered coldly, "Oh, dear brother, I suspect having the old fox in Baishan was always part of your plan, wasn't it?" He pointed a finger at the giant’s face, "All your schemes are for your own benefit, complete for you alone. What about others? Have you ever considered their feelings, or given the slightest thought to their paths? Why don't you ask if I want to stay in Baishan? Why don't you ask if I wish to seek the Dao like you, in the outside world?" "Why should I be the one left in this miserable place?" he lamented bitterly. "Haha, my dear junior brother, I’ve never seen you vent your frustrations so openly!" The giant laughed, stepping once more, instantly arriving in the depths of Junxuan Mountain. "You're too immature for me to bother about." He removed a grey stone slab, handing Jia Changgen to the Yellow Sand Zombie Servant. His voice grew piercingly cold and undeniable. "Heaven and earth, only I am supreme..." "If life is but a theatrical dream, I am destined to be its sole protagonist." "This is my Dao. Who dares to challenge it?" "Resist my plans?" "In any lifetime, you will never have the chance." The giant’s form dissolved into nothingness, leaving behind words of such potency that Jia Changgen’s expression grew exceedingly grim. ... Within the Chu Qin region, Qi Xiu, summoned by Chu Hongsang to Southern Chu City, paused midway. Suppressing his light aura, he glanced back toward the now invisible silhouette of the giant, on the Junxuan Mountain, filled with deep uncertainty. (To be continued)