Inside the carriage, Tuoba You’s cold voice could be heard.
The disciple was so frightened that his soul almost left his body. With a "thud," his knees hit the ground heavily, and cold sweat poured down his forehead like a waterfall. He kowtowed repeatedly:
"This disciple deserves death! This disciple has eyes but could not recognize Mount Tai, not knowing that Guardian Tuoba had returned to the mountain and collided with your carriage. I beg your pardon, sir!"
The rest of the purple-clad disciples were even more terrified, trembling like chaff in the wind. They kneeled on the ground in unison, with their foreheads pressed to the ground, not daring to breathe loudly.
In the Emotion Crossing Sect, hierarchy is strict.
If one offended a superior and collided with a Guardian, Tuoba You could extract their souls and refine their spirits without the sect asking any questions.
"Open the array."
Tuoba You did not even show his face, merely uttering two words coldly.
"Yes, yes, yes! Quick, open the array for Guardian Tuoba!"
The disciple scrambled to stand up, hurriedly casting the spell. The light curtain of the array immediately split open on both sides, revealing a wide passageway.
"Qing Xuan, my old friend, let’s go. Stooping to engage with this group of blind fools only tarnishes one’s status."
Tuoba You smiled inside the carriage and said,
"How about it? In the sect, I still have some face. In the future, benefits will surely come your way."
Chen Ye sat on the carriage shaft, listening to the faint laughter from within, clearly detecting a hint of pride.
This aloof Guardian of the Holy Sect was beaten like a stray dog in the Celestial Abyss, barely saving his life thanks to a Loose Cultivator like him.
Now that he had finally returned to his domain, it was only natural to take advantage of these low-level disciples to flaunt his authority and regain some face in front of him.
Since the other party wanted face, Chen Ye naturally went along with it, saying:
"Tuoba, this is more than just a bit of face! Now that Venerable Greed has fallen, the position of Venerable of the Greed Lineage is vacant. Once you reach the late Foundation Establishment, won’t the position of Venerable be yours for the taking?"
"Hahaha..."
Inside the carriage, Tuoba You burst into laughter,
"Qing Xuan, you might not be aware, but there are many outstanding cultivators in my lineage. For instance, my brother Tuoba Hong, whom you met in the Illusion Realm of the Celestial Abyss. He is now at the eighth layer of Foundation Establishment... The next Venerable will most likely be him."
Tuoba Hong?
Chen Ye pondered.
The Venerable is the strongest in the lineage, and the strongest in the Greed Lineage is probably only at the eighth layer of Foundation Establishment.
And the eighth layer of Foundation Establishment is definitely not his match.
...
Half a day later.
After taking care of the various matters related to entering the sect,
Tuoba You reminded, "Qing Xuan, as I promised earlier, you may cultivate in the sect for three years. However, our sect’s cultivators are often unruly, so be extra cautious, especially regarding your three disciples. Someone, take Qing Xuan to be settled at Cold Scale Mansion. The treatment should be in accordance with the courtesy of a Guest Elder of my Tuoba family. Show any negligence, and I’ll extract your soul!"
The steward trembled all over, repeatedly kowtowing in agreement.
"Tuoba, you’re thoughtful. You can rest assured in seclusion without worrying about this old me." Chen Ye cupped his hands with a smile.
Tuoba You nodded, said no more, and quickly headed into the depths of the mansion with a group of confidants in tow.
"Lord Qing Xuan, please follow me."
The steward got up from the ground, beaming with smiles, leading the way ahead.
Before long.
They arrived at their new home in the Emotion Crossing Sect, Cold Scale Mansion.
As they pushed open the courtyard door, the scene before them made the three little girls widen their eyes.
This place was entirely different from the demonic miasma of the Demon Sect outside, more like an immortal’s residence.
Jin’er whispered softly, "It seems even the cultivators of the Emotion Crossing Sect like beautiful places."
She had thought this place would be filled with skulls and ghostly lights!
Isn’t that what the storybooks from the Lingyin Sect always say?
As it turns out, the environment of Cold Scale Mansion is even better than that of Cangli Courtyard!
A stream of flowing spiritual spring water was introduced into the courtyard, gurgling among the rockery;
A few crystal pagoda trees, exuding a faint purple glow, were planted beside the spiritual spring, occasionally shedding a few sparkling leaves in the breeze.
Each room was spacious and bright, specially equipped with a Quiet Chamber for alchemy and an array for gathering spiritual qi.
"Lord, Cold Scale Mansion is one of the top-grade cave mansions of the Greed Lineage. If you ever lack anything, just instruct me."
The steward respectfully handed over a restriction jade token, then tactfully bowed and withdrew.
After the courtyard door closed, Chen Ye casually embedded the jade token into a groove on the door.
"Buzz—"
A semi-transparent array light screen rose slowly, enveloping the entire small courtyard.
Once confirmed that the outside world could not spy on them, the master and three disciples felt significantly more at ease.
"Phew... Qing Jun can’t breathe!"
The little girl cheered, removing the tattered straw hat from her head and tossing it onto a nearby stone table.
Like a wild dragon set free, she dashed to the edge of the spiritual spring with tiny legs, squatted down, and curiously stared at a few glowing spiritual fish swimming in the pool, her mouth watering slightly.
"Master, this fish is so fat... Master, why aren’t you saying anything? Master, don’t pretend you didn’t hear!"
Zhiwei and Jin’er both removed their disguises, their expressions restrained, but they both let out a sigh of relief.
"This Tuoba You is quite particular; he didn’t treat us like outsiders when dealing with us."
Chen Ye looked around, satisfied, and nodded.
Even though they’ve ventured deep into the man-eating belly of the Demon Sect, life must go on, and having a comfortable environment to live in is certainly for the best.
However... a certain drooling little girl was quite an eyesore.
Chen Ye glared at the incessantly chattering Qing Jun:
"Don’t keep drooling over the ornamental fish. We’re new here, and who knows if there are any malicious restrictions in this pond. Don’t touch it rashly."
"Oh..." Qing Jun stood up aggrievedly, but her big eyes couldn’t help but glance at the water’s surface, "But it looks really fat..."
"Alright, it’s not like you’re going to miss a bite."
Chen Ye chuckled quietly, rolled up his sleeves, and began assigning tasks,
"Don’t just stand around, get to work."
"Zhiwei, go clean up the main bedrooms and make the beds; Jin’er, check out the earthfire array in the quiet chamber to see if its fire veins are stable. Your master needs to refine pills and earn spirit stones in a couple of days; as for Qing Jun..."
"Qing Jun is responsible for eating!" The little girl immediately raised both hands high.
"You’re in charge of tidying up the kitchen, preparing some dishes for Master later, warming up some wine, and warming Master’s feet in the evening."
Chen Ye glanced at the little girl sideways, deliberately teasing her.
"Yay!"
Unexpectedly, the girl was excited instead.
After all, she hadn’t cooked for her Master in a long time!
...
Meanwhile.
In Wuyang Palace.
The floors here were paved with white jade, shrouded in spiritual mist, like a sacred land of immortals.
Two figures stood with their hands behind their backs, gazing distantly at the rolling spiritual clouds.
These two did not conceal their whereabouts and were dressed in the righteous vestment robes that clashed with those of the Emotion Crossing Sect, yet the high-tier cultivators of the Emotion Crossing Sect respectfully avoided them.
They were Huayue’s Hidden Dragon Gu Tangyin and Hua Wuyin.
Though the relations between Huayue Mansion and the Emotion Crossing Sect couldn’t be called close,
They traveled with the Li Family, and naturally, the Emotion Crossing Sect welcomed them into Wuyang Palace with high honors.
"Senior Sister, the foundation of the Emotion Crossing Sect is deeper than I expected."
Hua Wuyin frowned, looking grave,
"Just this Wuyang Palace itself is comparable to a third-tier top-grade spiritual artifact, with three hundred and sixty palaces floating in the sky simultaneously."
"Indeed."
Gu Tangyin’s expression was calm,
"Being descendants of Song Yang, how could the Emotion Crossing Sect be simple to deal with? Moreover, the Lord Luoxiao is currently in the Emotion Crossing Sect, who knows how many benefits they’ve gleaned from him."
Mentioning the Lord Luoxiao,
The two fell silent for a moment.
"They’ve placed us on the edges of this Wuyang Palace, providing us with good food and drink, yet they speak nothing of the Celestial Abyss, clearly stalling for time."
Hua Wuyin shook his head and sighed lightly,
"I suspect it has something to do with the Lord Luoxiao, but I’m not sure what they’re plotting."
As the two conversed,
"Dong——!"
Three consecutive heavy bell tones suddenly resonated from deep within Wuyang Palace!
At the moment the bell rang, the Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi throughout Wuyang Palace and the seven solitary peaks below began to boil simultaneously.
"What’s happening?"
Hua Wuyin’s expression changed, instinctively gripping his folding fan tightly.
Above the dome of Wuyang Palace, the peaceful spiritual clouds were abruptly torn apart, and the sky was awash in a cascade of blood-red light, dyeing most of the sky a shocking dark red.
Then, seven bone serpents, each hundreds of feet long and burning with ghostly ghostfire, roared as they burst out from the blood cloud!
The aura of each of these seven bone serpents was as powerful as a late period Foundation Establishment greater demon!
Yet they were merely beasts used to pull the cart.
Behind the bone serpents, a white jade palace was dragged by chains of Profound Iron, approaching from afar, and came to a stop, suspended in the air over Wuyang Palace.
"These are the Guardian bone serpents of the Emotion Crossing Sect, nurtured by the seven veins, with each contributing all its resources to protect the Divine Son."
Gu Tangyin’s expression remained indifferent as she glanced at the palace and heaved a sigh of relief,
"It seems the Lord Luoxiao is indeed still within the Emotion Crossing Sect..."