CH 073 Time Flows Like Water, Everything Has Faded Nowadays

Amidst the grand procession of flying peaks, one stood out conspicuously. On its steep cliffs were the three characters "Zhuiyun Peak," embedded with a stern and formidable power that only higher level cultivators could dare to chance a second look without being crushed by the Dao it contains. The masters of other peaks envied it greatly, for the inscription was personally written by the Sect Leader!

On the mountain, various pavilions and buildings were being quietly constructed. But despite the relatively small scale of the project, building while flying was bound to attract attention.

On Zhuiyun Peak, two cultivators leaned against a small building, gazing at the large characters inscribed on the cliff with a gentle sigh.

"Even my peak has never had an inscription. I almost want to pry this one off and take it," Bai Shuixian said wistfully. "The Sect Leader really favors that kid."

"Are you worried?" Yan Zhao asked her.

"A bit. After all, he favored that beast back then too," Bai Shuixian said slowly. "But a few hundred years later, he managed to overcome his inner demons and took on an apprentice again. What more could we ask for?"

Yan Zhao nodded in agreement and then called over the person in charge of the peak, handing out the route map for this journey.

"This is the route we’ll take. After leaving the Western Continent, we'll first head to the Qingqiu Domain, where we’ll stay for only a month. Then, we'll proceed to the Yuntian Domain. At the junction of Qingqiu and Yuntian, there’s a Thunder Valley, which often experiences Lightning Tribulations. We’ll replenish our stock of thunder spirit stones there for use as a backup power source for the flying peaks. Lastly, we’ll circle around the Yuntian Domain before returning to Kun-Lai," Yan Zhao explained. This information was typically only disclosed to the masters of the peaks. The lower-ranking disciples didn't need to know.

Feng Qingxiu thanked him and said he understood, carefully pocketing the map.

Yan Zhao and Bai Shuixian nodded, left a few more words of encouragement, and then left.

Feng Qingxiu touched the paper figure pasted on his chest, feeling a bit disappointed. He flicked a paper figure off the flying peak. His master had given him a paper figure containing a trace of the Sect Leader’s divine consciousness, but he had said that no matter how strong one's divine consciousness was it couldn’t sense anything across domains. Thus, the divine consciousness would remain dormant in the paper figure until they reached the Yuntian Domain.

But what did "dormant" mean?

Feng Qingxiu pondered his master’s occasional strange words, always finding them profound.

Once the flying peak set off, it would follow a single direction, but the strong winds in the sky would cause it to drift off course. This required the peak master to periodically correct the direction to keep the path steady. Every ten days of travel, they would rest for a day.

The peak was bustling, mostly with disciples from Qingnu Peak, who made up almost two-thirds of the group this time as Qingdi Peak’s floating peak could no longer travel far. The rest were You Jia and a few fellow disciples from Wenjian Peak. Huang Wei and Ying An didn’t bring anyone along.

"Why didn’t you go to Wenjian Peak, since you’re the deputy peak master's son?" Feng Qingxiu asked You Jia.

You Jia’s reason made Feng Qingxiu unable to know whether he should laugh or cry. He said, "You and Qingnu are always making headlines. Who else would I follow?"

"But there’s no internet outside Kun-Lai, right?" Feng Qingxiu couldn’t understand.

You Jia summoned a tiny white bird, like a sparrow with a ribbon-like long tail, which quietly perched on his hand. "This is Piaopiao, an almost extinct white-feathered falcon. With it, I can get headlines back to Kun-Lai within a day, even in the Yuntian Domain. My people will post them for me," he explained. "Wenjian Peak is pitiful. They don’t know how to do business or alchemy. They’re basically bodyguards, earning just a bit of money. My last headline’s income is enough for my cultivation for ten years. It's better than selling my tentacles, right?"

Feng Qingxiu couldn’t help but laugh. "I’ll also sell you headlines in the future if I find any."

"As expected, the Sect Leader has good vision," You Jia said, satisfied. "Come, let me tell you about this place. We’re about to reach the Qingqiu Domain."

Feng Qingxiu nodded and walked over with him.

Pointing to a blackened area to the north, You Jia said, "That’s called the Ghost Ruins, an ancient battlefield from when the Great Xuan Dynasty invaded Qingqiu. Back then, nine of Great Xuan's twelve Human Immortals fell here. The war between the human and spirit demon races lasted nearly a hundred years, with countless casualties. Both sides used numerous vicious spiritual techniques, leaving this dead land full of evil beasts and toxins. But there are also treasures here, which is why Juedu Peak has been preparing to harvest the resources here for thirty years."

"Great Xuan's invasion?" Feng Qingxiu had heard of it but was still curious.

"Ask those two. They know all about it," You Jia pointed to a snake and a bird not far away. "It was their doing, wasn’t it, Yin Wushe, Yin Baiying?"

The snake and the bird turned to look at him, visibly wary. "So what if it was?" they said simultaneously.

"Tell us about it, and I’ll waive all your rent on the flying peak," You Jia smiled. "I just want to know how you did it."

The black snake glanced at him and then spoke in a low voice. "In the late years of Great Xuan, the nation's fortune had reached its limit. Many cultivators couldn’t advance due to insufficient fortune and died of old age, causing unrest. The High Priest predicted that the human territory couldn’t support so many cultivators and demanded the nobles streamline their fortune cultivators and promote more fortune cultivators among commoners. This divided the court into two factions."

"Then, the emperor said the lack of fortune was due to insufficient territory and called for an invasion to expand the realm and gain more national fortune," the nightingale added indifferently. "The High Priest agreed but advised preparation and reconnaissance before the invasion, considering the unknowns and the entrenched cultivators in other domains."

"But the emperor thought the High Priest was deliberately opposing him and insisted on an immediate surprise attack," the black snake shrugged. "Three times, we invaded the Qingqiu Domain and were beaten back each time by traps set by Celestial Fox Su Wan and others. Most were sent into reincarnation, leaving only a pittance of our remaining forces."

"The emperor was never this Humiliated but Great Xuan only had three existing Human Immortals left—himself, the High Priest, and the empress. He planned to draw fortune to create more Human Immortals, hoping to secure victory with absolute power," the nightingale continued. "The High Priest vehemently opposed this, fearing it could endanger the human race, but the emperor accused him of disrupting morale."

"Everyone supported the emperor, wanting more Human Immortals. With no choice, the High Priest conceded, and they drew upon the fortune of the human race, creating nine more Human Immortals. It was Great Xuan's peak of power, with twelve Huam Immortals," the black snake lowered his head. "Su Wan was nearly killed, and the foxes of Qingqiu scattered. But she brought in many Great Sages for support, and the battlefield remained in Qingqiu for almost a hundred years."

"That century-long battle left the land uninhabitable, but the borrowed fortune had to be repaid. The High Priest demanded a partial repayment first, but... well, Great Xuan fell into chaos, split apart, and the remaining Human Immortals, including us, were devoured by the backlash of the borrowed fortune," the nightingale said. "Dying and entering reincarnation."

"That’s the gist of it," the black snake retreated. "That dead land was a result of multiple blood sacrifices on both sides. The land became poisonous, killing many, so we moved the battlefield several times. Half of Qingqiu Domain turned into a wasteland."

"Then Su Wan entering Great Xuan's imperial harem to divide the court and bring down the empire wasn’t entirely wrong," You Jia commented, seeing it from a later perspective.

"She could just target us! But why the emperor?" the black snake hissed, "It must have been the work of Ziyun Dao and those other sects. They were exiled to Yuntian Domain by Great Xuan. If they hadn’t 'helped,' we would have conquered Qingqiu ages ago. But now... we aren’t even human anymore."

"That’s short-sightedness!" You Jia criticized, "Look at the Sect Leader. No matter how poor or tough the Western Continent was, he never let us rob others. Instead, he had us bring our own goods over for trade. We even considered raiding small neighboring spirit demon clans, but the Sect Leader declared: We may be poor, but we cannot steal or rob!"

Kun-Lai dares to call itself poor! Do they have any shame?

The black snake and nightingale glared at him. "Your prices for pills and artifacts are robbery!"

"Exactly!" the black snake agreed, "Robbery at least leaves some hidden treasures. Your prices clean us out and even force us to sell blood!"

"Did we force you to buy?" Qingnu approached silently, smiling at the two spirit demons. "You sold your blood to pay rent just fifteen minutes ago, and now you resent me. Isn’t that burning bridges, toppling ladders, and biting the hand that feeds you?"

The black snake and nightingale shrank back and quickly fled, as if facing a predator.

"So, Peak Master, don’t be shy," Qingnu smiled. "Our kind of robbery is reasonable and legal."

Feng Qingxiu nodded in agreement.

In the evening, Feng Qingxiu wrote down his experiences of the day, expressing his endless admiration for his master. After checking that no one was around, he took out his Net Charm and sent his master a private message!

A private message!

This was a new feature his master had specifically developed for him.

Such a blissful feeling...

Feng Qingxiu quietly took out the small piece of paper with his master's divine consciousness, kissed it, and then carefully put it back.

The candlelight was dim, so he didn't notice the paper turning red.