Chapter 394: Ten Years Reunion

While there was some regret on Huangfu Song’s face, the purpose of this trip had clearly been achieved. “Let’s go. With Guan Xingxiu’s Falling Star Divine Sword protecting us, this journey will surely be safe,” he said, unable to contain his joy as he re-summoned the Dust-Crossing Boat.

Recalling the conversation between the two in the courtyard, Li Fan thoughtfully asked, “Has the local wave of resistance become this severe? So much so that you need to find a protector?”

Huangfu Song replied, “It’s better to be safe than sorry. Anything can happen in such a remote place. If things get out of hand and they tie us up and throw us into the ashes of the Burning Embers, claiming it was an accident, what could we do? With Guan Xingxiu’s Falling Star Divine Sword, it’s different.”

Huangfu Song said proudly, “Don’t let his current Spirit Transformation cultivation fool you. A Spirit Transformation realm cultivator who has fallen from the Dao Integration realm is far more powerful than an ordinary Spirit Transformation cultivator. At the very least, in Lanlin Prefecture, where no Dao Integration Immortal Venerable presides, Guan Xingxiu’s flying sword can suppress all dissent.”

Huangfu Song took out the small golden sword again, stroking it lovingly. Li Fan gazed at the Falling Star Divine Sword, faintly sensing a soaring, sharp aura emanating from it. Recalling the indolent appearance he had just witnessed, Li Fan couldn’t help but feel a pang of emotion. “A Dao Integration expert of his generation, reduced to this state simply because he failed to see the bigger picture,” he mused.

Then, remembering Guan Xingxiu’s words, he couldn’t help but ask, “Senior Guan just mentioned the passing of the old leader. Did Immortal Venerable Jicheng perish?”

“Indeed. It happened not long ago,” Huangfu Song confirmed. “He, the esteemed elder, ultimately passed away quietly in his Heavenly Apex Institute, alongside that willow tree.”

Immortal Venerable Jicheng’s aged face involuntarily appeared before Li Fan’s eyes. “Without Huanzhen, I might soon be like him, left to wait for death in terror,” he thought. “What good is Dao Integration cultivation if one doesn’t achieve immortality? It’s all an illusion in the end.”

As if the demise of the old Dao Integration expert had opened the floodgates of conversation, Huangfu Song put away the Falling Star Divine Sword and remarked with deep emotion, “Perhaps Guan Xingxiu’s despondency is also related to this. With Immortal Venerable Jicheng’s five hundred years of experience controlling the Myriad Immortals Alliance’s Garrison Institute, he still had no hope of immortality. This shows just how difficult it is to defy the laws of heaven and earth. For Guan Xingxiu, having his cultivation crippled and trying to cultivate from the Spirit Transformation realm again, it’s even harder. You see, to re-integrate with the Dao, one must rely on a Heavenly Soul that is similar to their previous one. Heavenly Souls are rare enough as it is; to require a specific nature makes it almost impossible.”

During their casual conversation, the Dust-Crossing Boat reached the central core area of the Spirit-Locking Array, the designated location for the Heavenly Profound Array Core. Currently, the array was not yet fully constructed and would require some more time. Aside from the array masters who were also students of the Universal Pavilion, the other cultivators were not very friendly towards Huangfu Song and Li Fan’s arrival, at least, that’s how it seemed. However, after Huangfu Song unleashed the Falling Star Divine Sword, these cultivators had no choice but to restrain themselves.

Meanwhile, in Shilin Prefecture, near what was once the Cloud Sea and was now the Cloud Abyss, Zhang Haobo looked at the endless void not far away, his face etched with sorrow. Even though it wasn’t the first time he had seen this scene, he still found it hard to accept. His former home, that blue ocean teeming with life, had astonishingly transformed into this appearance when he saw it again.

“Haobo, please accept my condolences,” Xiao Heng said, walking over and patting his shoulder in comfort.

“What exactly happened back then? Why did the vast Cloud Sea suddenly turn into this?” Zhang Haobo couldn’t help but ask again.

Xiao Heng shook his head. “I don’t know either. Senior Skull suddenly warned us that a great calamity might befall the Cloud Sea. So, shortly after you left for Jiushan Prefecture, I also fled far away from the Cloud Sea. Ye Feipeng, however, seemed to know something and insisted on not coming with me. I initially thought he had a different destiny he was hiding from me, but who would have thought he never appeared again after that? I suppose he must no longer be among the living. If I had known, I should have tried harder to persuade him,” a hint of sadness flashed in Xiao Heng’s eyes.

After a long silence, he continued, “Over the years, I’ve tried to inquire about the changes that occurred in the Cloud Sea. But what surprised me was that in less than a year, most cultivators had almost no recollection of the Cloud Sea. It was as if this region had never existed. Even now, I only recall the existence of the Cloud Sea when I personally gaze upon this abyss before me.”

Zhang Haobo said, “It’s the same for me. I spent nearly ten years in Jiushan Prefecture and didn’t have a single memory of the Cloud Sea. It was only after returning to find you, and witnessing the Cloud Abyss, that past memories flooded back like a tide.” He paused, then whispered, “This must be the influence of the Immortal Longevity Venerable.”

Xiao Heng nodded slightly. “Perhaps soon, this memory in our minds will also vanish completely, just like the former Cloud Sea.”

The two looked at each other, speechless. Silence fell by the edge of the abyss.

Before long, they were interrupted by a rumbling sound from not far away. They looked back and saw that Su Xiaomei and Su Changyu were sparring again.

“Brother, be careful!” Su Xiaomei gave Su Changyu a mischievous smile.

In an instant, dozens of figures in various attires appeared simultaneously, surrounding Su Changyu. These figures held different weapons but had no faces; on each blank face, only various blood-red symbols rotated. “See if you can block this move!” the faceless blood-masked figures laughed eerily in unison, each with their own strange tone. The weapons in their hands emitted wisps of crimson light. Countless crimson bursts erupted, accompanying the sounds, and were about to strike Su Changyu.

Su Changyu showed no panic; instead, he had his eyes closed. The moment those crimson beams approached him, his outstretched right hand glowed with a soft white light. Moving at extremely high speed, it instantly created the illusion of a thousand hands appearing simultaneously. Each phantom hand grasped an incoming crimson beam. Then, with a simultaneous exertion of force, in an instant, the crimson light was reversed. Instead, it launched an attack back towards the dozens of faceless blood-masked figures.

“Boom!”

The situation was reversed in a flash. Caught off guard, the figures were struck by their own attacks. Many of the figures vanished. However, one of them remained completely unharmed after taking a crimson beam hit. Instead, it used the cover of the explosion to quietly approach Su Changyu. Its body burst open with a roar. A giant net of flames was about to envelop Su Changyu.

Su Changyu’s expression remained unchanged, but his eyes suddenly opened wide. Each eyeball contained two pupils, and the four dark apertures constricted to the size of needlepoints. The fiercely burning flames before him were instantly frozen. Su Changyu then struck out with a palm. His target was not the flames before him; it was the hidden Su Xiaomei.

“Bang, bang, bang!” Phantom palm shadows appeared one after another, and continuous explosions echoed all around.

“You can’t hit me!” Su Xiaomei’s voice came from all directions, elusive like a ghost.

“Oh?”

“Oh?” A smile appeared on Su Changyu’s lips. High above, a colossal transparent palm had formed at some unknown point. It completely enveloped the battlefield where the two were, then it pressed down from above.

“Boom!”

The ground sank deeply, kicking up dust. A massive handprint appeared on the ground. Su Xiaomei, who was hiding within it, could no longer conceal herself. She was grabbed by the illusory five fingers and held suspended in the air.

“Let me go!” Su Xiaomei roared. Her eyes turned crimson, and her tightly clenched fingers slightly loosened, showing a tendency to break free instantly. Su Changyu extended his right hand and made a distant grasping motion. Another illusory giant palm appeared, overlaying the previous transparent palm. Su Xiaomei was thus suppressed once more.

“Argh! So annoying!” Su Xiaomei’s innate divine abilities continuously activated. Her hair gradually turned crimson, and the surrounding air became distorted from the intense heat. But no matter how she struggled, she remained unable to break free from the giant palm’s suppression. “I give up!”

Following Su Xiaomei’s exasperated shout, a crimson sun mysteriously appeared in the sky. The giant palm’s illusion turned into nothingness under the crimson sun’s burning. Su Xiaomei, now free, showed no joy on her face. She retracted her Crimson Sun Heavenly Grotto Domain. Scratching her head, she flew to Su Changyu’s side.

“Brother, how did you become so powerful?” she asked with some curiosity. “I suppressed my cultivation to the Golden Core realm, and now I’m still no match for you.”

Su Changyu replied, “When we left the Cloud Sea back then, the Yin Yueting sisters discovered ancient artifacts imbued with Dao rhythm that had survived from ancient times. After years of restoration, we can now experience a complete wisp of Dao rhythm. This ‘Sky-Suppressing Palm’ technique I just used was something I comprehended from the Dao rhythm. Little Sister, your comprehension is far superior to mine; I believe you can comprehend even stronger divine abilities from it.”

As Su Changyu spoke, an identical voice echoed simultaneously, creating a strange double-voice effect. But as he slowly closed his eyes, the other echo gradually weakened and finally became inaudible. Su Changyu had said this was due to his practice of a special cultivation method, so Su Xiaomei and the others, who had gradually grown accustomed to it, no longer found it strange.

“Yay! I want to comprehend this divine ability too!” she clapped her hands happily upon hearing Su Changyu’s words.

Even without opening his eyes, Su Changyu could clearly perceive the appearance of his sister, whom he hadn’t seen in a long time. Although she had already reached Nascent Soul cultivation, she still seemed like an overgrown child. Thinking of this, Su Changyu dotingly patted Su Xiaomei’s head.

“After more than a decade apart, everyone is finally reunited again.” Xiao Heng, standing nearby, felt a sense of relief watching this scene.

Suddenly, he sensed faint fluctuations coming from the hand bone in his storage ring, which he hadn’t used for a long time, and his expression brightened. Since Senior Skull had issued a warning earlier, saving everyone’s lives, it had fallen back into slumber. Could it be that it had finally awakened now? Immediately, Xiao Heng eagerly entered the Bone Scout Realm.