Yuan Su remained silent. He bowed quietly toward Shangyuan, then stood gazing blankly at the lingering mist.
Shangyuan tilted his head slightly, as if listening. Before him, something neither solid nor illusory faintly emerged.
It resembled many things, a robe draped over his shoulders, a stone cradled in his palm, or even a void. Shangyuan lifted his eyes and stared straight into the empty sky.
The clouds beside him parted, and two indistinct figures slowly materialized. One of them spoke, “Congratulations, Exalted Immortal.”
The second figure likewise bowed with utmost decorum, then withdrew a golden scroll from his sleeve. With a gentle flick of his arm, the scroll unfurled.
The two held the scroll between them, presenting it to True Monarch Shangyuan. The one on the left produced a writing brush from his sleeve and said respectfully, “Exalted Immortal, having transcended the mortal realm, we humbly request you erase your name yourself. We dare not commit such sacrilege.”
True Monarch Shangyuan slightly shook his head and remained motionless. The two envoys exchanged uncertain glances, unsure what to do, when Shangyuan said calmly, “I am not listed in the registry. You needn’t search.”
The two underworld officials looked at each other again, then put away the brush and rolled up the golden scroll. Only then did Shangyuan wave a hand and say, “Leave quickly. If battle breaks out, you two may be harmed.”
“Many thanks for the True Monarch’s compassion. We take our leave.”
Nodding repeatedly, as if granted amnesty, the two officials bowed deeply and vanished into a gust of ghostly wind, dissipating swiftly from heaven and earth.
Shangyuan slowly stood up. The white radiance behind him retracted into his body. He pressed his hand on the sharp green sword at his waist and said coldly, “Fellow Daoists. There’s no need to wait any longer!”
At those words, all the Purple Mansion Realm cultivators in the sky bowed their heads in unison. None dared to move or speak. Li Xuanfeng suddenly felt his entire vision fill with deep blue-green. The entire world seemed to have shifted.
“The sky... is gone...”
The sun, moon, stars, and night sky had all vanished. In their place was a vast and endless ocean of jade-colored water. It stretched from east to west and was suspended overhead. Looking up, he could still see speckled island reefs floating above.
“This is... this is...”
The sea above mirrored the snow-peaked jade mountains beneath his feet and the Northern Sea far below. Heaven and earth were now both ocean, the boundaries of up and down completely blurred.
The endless jade sea above shimmered and closed in silently. Li Xuanfeng’s eyes throbbed in pain, golden stars flashing before his vision. He dared not look any longer. Yuan Su had already grabbed his armor and forcibly turned his head aside, facing his own.
Ning Tiaoxiao’s right eye socket was completely hollow, with emerald-green seawater pouring from it. His left eye was also sagging, half-melted, dissolving into a pale blue mass. His entire face looked as though it had been splashed with water. Liquid green flowed down in streaks.
Li Xuanfeng’s vision went dark. He barely saw a blazing comet-like star fall into the ocean and then something massive, vast beyond comprehension, like a titanic body, slithering from the sea above to the depths below. Its inky-black scales shimmered as it moved.
There was only silence in his ears. He heard nothing. The world seemed frozen in time, it was utterly still. And before him, Ning Tiaoxiao’s lips moved slowly, saying, “Pristine Water.”
Eastern Sea. Xia Mountain.
Xia Mountain, a sea mountain north of the Converging Sea. It served as a resting point for the Heavenly Glow of the Eastern Sea. Those that rose from the Northwest or Northeast would always pause here before continuing along the celestial firmament.
Sometimes, this pause lasted just a few seconds but other times, it continued for several hours. The glow from the Northwest usually flowed toward Qunyi, while that from the Northeast drifted back to the Great Western Plains of Wu State.
Being in the Converging Sea, this was naturally Dragon Clan territory. For ordinary Foundation Establishment Realm cultivators, coming here was certain death. But Purple Mansion Realm cultivators were welcomed to gather glow , and the dragons would treat them with great hospitality.
As the Heavenly Glow rose, a young man flew in atop it. He was refined and dignified, with sharp brows and bright eyes. In his hand, he carried a gourd.
He landed lightly on the peak and checked the time with a frown of puzzlement. At that moment, a woman flew in on the wind, cradling a swirl of multicolored radiance in her hands. Her arched brows curved gently as she asked, “My husband, what’s wrong?”
These were, of course, the couple Li Xizhi and Yang Xiao’er. Li Xizhi was recovering and harvesting glow here, and Yang Xiao’er had come across the entire Eastern Sea to find him. She had only arrived the night before, with the help of escorts from the Yang Family. Without them, the journey would’ve been extremely perilous.
Li Xizhi was currently observing the glow. On paper, he was collecting it for Daoist Master Changxi, and he intended to perform this duty properly. After some mental calculation, he muttered, “How strange... Something must have happened in the Northern Sea. Not a single streak of Heavenly Glow has passed through. Could it be that a Purple Mansion Realm cultivator fell, disrupting the heavens?”
He calculated a little further and said, “And yet there’s no celestial anomaly in the Northwest... How can no Heavenly Glow pass through?”
Yang Xiao’er understood at once and said softly, “Husband, you’ve been secluded here. You may not know but in recent days, Daoist Master Shangyuan was to undergo his breakthrough in the Northern Sea. It must have been him... unintentionally halting the Heavenly Glow.”
Li Xizhi’s brow furrowed with worry. But since no glow was coming, he had time. He took Yang Xiao’er with him and flew down to their cave residence.
This dwelling, prepared by the Dragon Clan, was spacious. He shut the stone door tightly and asked quietly, “You came so suddenly yesterday, I didn’t have time to ask. This place is secure. We finally have a moment.”
Li Xizhi reached into his storage pouch and retrieved the feathered robe. It was tattered and torn, with a deep blue palm print scorched into the back. Yang Xiao’er’s expression turned panicked at the sight. She cried, “What happened to it?!”
Having missed her husband dearly after hearing he was at Xia Mountain, Yang Xiao’er had rushed over on the wind. She’d been puzzled when she saw he hadn’t worn the feathered robe she gave him but now, upon seeing it, her heart filled with dread.
“What happened?!” she asked.
Li Xizhi explained the situation in general terms, then asked softly, “This feathered robe of yours... it’s only at Qi Cultivation Realm, yet it held a golden light as a final defense...”
Hearing that, Yang Xiao’er first carefully made sure his injuries were no longer serious. Only then did she purse her lips and huff, “Oh, that’s all?”
She chuckled and said, “I had two feathered robes. One from the main Yang Family line, the other part of my dowry. I was worried, with you running around outside and so many enemies watching... so I made sure to prepare for that.”
Li Xizhi, quick-witted as always, immediately understood. He said gently, “So... you swapped the robes.”
“Of course I did. I’m not out there fighting for my life, no one would dare lay a hand on me anyway.” Yang Xiao’er gave a light, proud smile and said, “So the one you were wearing is the Yang Family heirloom robe... and the one I’m wearing now is the one from my dowry!”