Tang Mei sighed and started speaking. "Back then, you were constantly clashing with Yun Zheng, and each clash resulted in you getting injured. That is, until one day, Yun Zheng came to me and made an offer: if I got with him, he would stop harassing you."
She looked down, her voice trembling. "Little did I know, even after I got with him, he continued to try to harm you by sending people in secret. Maybe my choice was wrong."
Jiang Yun replied, "It's been 500 years. Why are you still lingering in this sect?"
Tang Mei replied, "Because I had nowhere else to go. This is the sect where I was raised. Not to mention, back then I was still worried about you."
"After all, if I left, Yun Zheng could have actively sought trouble with you rather than doing it secretly—a fact I only discovered much later."
"I see," Jiang Yun replied. "But what good is this explanation now? It’s been 500 years. It is too late."
"I know," Tang Mei sighed. "I still wanted to tell you the truth, even if it is too late."
Jiang Yun felt a mix of emotions. The woman who had abandoned him in the past was now claiming she had only been trying to protect him.
Jiang Yun replied, "Forget it. It's in the past. I moved on long ago."
Tang Mei looked down, unsure of what to say.
Jiang Yun then added, "I’ll destroy the sect that caused me so much trouble all those years ago."
As he spoke, he waved his hand, and a blazing fire swept through the Flaming Phoenix Sect. The flames did not destroy the buildings, but screams echoed before suddenly falling silent. Every person in the sect turned to ash, leaving the elegant structures standing, quiet, and empty.
"Ironic, isn't it?" Jiang Yun mused. "A sect called the Flaming Phoenix being burned to death. Since I have nowhere to go right now, I didn't destroy the structures. It wouldn't be so bad to live here. After all, it's the least they could do after causing me so much trouble."
The sect where she had spent her entire life was suddenly empty. Even though she didn't have many good memories, it had still been her home. She had spent so much effort stalling her marriage to Yun Zheng, only for Jiang Yun to solve the problem so easily.
Jiang Yun turned to her. "So, what are you going to do now?"
"I have no intention of harming you, but I destroyed your sect, so it might be strange to keep living here."
Tang Mei snapped out of her shock and replied, "I will stay here. I’m quite curious. What have you been doing all these years?"
"Suit yourself," Jiang Yun said. He turned to Bai Yue and added, "This will be our home."
Bai Yue nodded as the three of them entered the former Flaming Phoenix Sect. Jiang Yun destroyed the sect gate and replaced it with a new name: the Invincible Cloud Sect.
"Now that I’m strong enough, it won’t be a stretch to make my own sect," Jiang Yun thought as they walked toward the main hall.
Upon arriving, he waved his hand, and a golden cloud descended before dissipating into the air.
Tang Mei gasped. "What did you do? Why did the spiritual energy become so dense?"
Suddenly, Bai Yue, a mortal who had never cultivated before, broke through to the first level of Qi Refining.
"Since this is now my home, I might as well make it comfortable," Jiang Yun said. "Besides, it is good for this little girl to learn to cultivate in this environment."
"Is this how it feels to have cultivation?" Bai Yue asked in excitement.
"That's right," Jiang Yun replied. "This is just the beginning."
Tang Mei asked, "Just how strong are you now to be able to do this?"
"Strong enough to do whatever I want," Jiang Yun replied.
Tang Mei sought out Jiang Yun daily, asking questions and trying to catch up on the lost years. Jiang Yun gave only short, vague remarks. Eventually, Tang Mei grew content just being in his presence.
During this time, Jiang Yun imparted cultivation knowledge to Bai Yue. She reached the ninth level of Qi Refining at a speed that seemed impossibly fast to others. However, Jiang Yun was an invincible being who had mastered the law of time. Whenever Bai Yue finished his lessons, she would enter a meditative state, and Jiang Yun would use his powers to accelerate her time, making her long seclusions seem instantaneous.
A month later, Bai Yue broke through to the Foundation Establishment stage.
Excited, she said, "I can fly now!"
She took out a sword Jiang Yun had given her, mounted it, and prepared to take flight. She lifted off the ground, flying at an astonishing speed with joy written all over her face.
Jiang Yun watched her, feeling a strange sense of accomplishment. He had found a new goal in life: raising this little girl.
Jiang Yun had spent most of his life cultivating alone, and having company didn't feel bad at all. He considered that perhaps creating a well-natured sect wouldn't be such a bad idea. Every sect he had seen was corrupt, seeking vengeance for the smallest slights, and rarely allowing for explanations. He had been forced to run away multiple times after offending powerful sects.
If he were to build a sect, he would ensure his members stayed in line and avoided unnecessary trouble.
As he thought this, Bai Yue accidentally collided with an elegantly dressed man who was also furious.
"How dare you crash into me? Are you blind? Do you know who I am? Nobody dares to get in my way!"
Bai Yue apologized, acknowledging it was her fault, but the man sneered. "Do you think an apology is enough? If I let you go, where would my honor be? Anyone who gets in my way dies or is crippled. Servant, go cripple this girl!"
One of the two men behind the elegant man stepped forward, but before he could attack, Jiang Yun appeared. He was reminded once again of the arrogance of sect members.
"Who have I barely offended? Why take things so far? Besides, what are you doing on my territory?"
The man scoffed. "What I do is none of your business. And what do you mean your territory? This is the Flaming Phoenix Sect’s land."
"We have come to inquire about them as we haven't heard from them for some time. I am Yi Chen of the Thunder God Sect. My father is a friend of the Flaming Phoenix Sect Master, so of course, I can be here. Who are you to claim this? Servant, kill these two insolent fools!"
The servant, a ninth-stage golden core cultivator, launched an attack.
Jiang Yun sighed. "Another arrogant young master. Does the world ever run out of them?"
With a wave of his hand, the servant turned into a mist of blood. Yi Chen's eyes widened in shock.
"How dare you kill my man? My sect won’t let you get away with this!"
Jiang Yun was deeply annoyed. He had heard this phrase his entire life. With a flick of his wrist, he ended Yi Chen and his remaining servant. He told Bai Yue to return to her cultivation and stepped forward, disappearing from sight.
He reappeared in front of the Thunder God Sect, his voice booming. "Your sect has offended me. How dare you raise such an arrogant young master? If I'm not mistaken, your soul plates have shattered, and you were already planning to hunt me down."
Immediately, an angry middle-aged man emerged with a group of elders. "How dare a piece of trash come here seeking death!"
The man, who resembled Yi Chen, shouted, "So you are the one who killed my son? You won't leave here alive." He launched an attack, followed by the others.
Jiang Yun easily defused their strikes and began his slaughter. With a wave of his hand, everyone except the middle-aged man perished.
Startled, the man cried, "Wait! You can't kill me. I am Yi Yujun. My ancestor is an elder of the Sound Nurturing Sect. Their sect master is a Mahayana level powerhouse, and my ancestor is in the Tribulation Transformation realm. If you kill me, not only you, but everyone you know will die."
At the mention of the Sound Nurturing Sect, Jiang Yun remembered a familiar name. Long ago, while hiding from the Flaming Phoenix Sect, he had saved a beautiful, injured woman. They had spent months adventuring together, developing feelings for one another, until her family found her. The elders of the Sound Nurturing Sect had looked at Jiang Yun with disgust, calling him "trash."
They had told him, "You can never provide anything for her. Don't come after her, or you will die."
The woman had tearfully said goodbye, telling him they were from different worlds. Jiang Yun had been too weak to fight them then, so he had pushed the memory into the back of his mind.
Now, he was all-powerful. He remembered her name, Nangong Yu. He wondered what had become of her.
"I’ll pay that sect a visit," Jiang Yun decided, "And if they displease me, I won't mind destroying them too."
He turned back to Yi Yujun, who looked expectant, thinking Jiang Yun was hesitating. Jiang Yun merely turned him into a mist of blood. He had let him talk only because he liked hearing the last words of those who held grudges.
He turned his gaze toward the Thunder God Sect. With a single thought, a massive spectral hand slammed down, flattening the entire sect into a crater.
He then vanished, reappearing before the gates of the Sound Nurturing Sect, ready for the next confrontation.