At the same time, on the main peak of the First Immortal Sect.
The solemn and majestic main hall stood amid a slowly drifting sea of clouds. The faint light of dawn fell upon the eaves, casting a dazzling sheen.
Inside a side hall, thin spirals of incense smoke rose from a burner, curling through the air before fading away.
Gu Guangming, Sect Master of the First Immortal Sect, stepped inside. Lifting the curtain, he laughed heartily. “Brother Yu, it has been a long time.”
“Brother Gu.” Yu Si hurried to his feet from behind a low table and bowed with clasped hands. “I have come to disturb your esteemed sect without warning. I hope the Sect Master will forgive the intrusion.”
Yu Si was the Pavilion Master of the Star Plucking Pavilion, the only sect in the cultivation world devoted primarily to divination.
While the great immortal sects and aristocratic families maneuvered against one another beneath the surface, both cooperating and competing, the Star Plucking Pavilion alone maintained neutrality and cordial relations with all. After all, every sect and family eventually needed to seek divinations of fortune and misfortune, and thus they treated Pavilion Master Yu Si with courtesy.
After exchanging pleasantries, Gu Guangming’s gaze shifted to the person seated beside Yu Si, and he paused slightly.
A young man occupied the secondary seat. Morning light fell across his broad shoulders, outlining a figure as upright as a pine tree.
His features were striking and austere. His lashes were lowered as his long fingers idly traced the rim of his teacup, as though deep in thought. He did not even seem to notice Gu Guangming’s entrance.
Gu Guangming and Yu Si were both heads of immortal sects, highly respected throughout the cultivation world. He was accustomed to cultivators and Disciples reacting with nervousness, flattery, or at the very least bowing deferentially in greeting. He had not expected to be ignored so completely.
More perplexing still was the young man’s bearing. Though seated at the side, he carried himself with such natural authority that it felt as though he occupied the seat of honor, with the Pavilion Master of the Star Plucking Pavilion merely accompanying him. For a fleeting moment, one might mistake him for the true master of the hall.
“This must be Ling Xiao, the adopted son of Daoist Bai Hao,” Gu Guangming said at last, composing himself while his thoughts churned beneath his smile. “Truly a remarkable young talent.”
Only upon hearing his name did the young man lift his gaze and offer a formal salute with clasped hands.
“Ling Xiao greets seniors.”
His movements possessed an innate nobility. Though his etiquette was impeccable, his aura remained steady and unruffled, as if unaware that he stood before one of the most renowned figures in the cultivation world.
Gu Guangming quickly assessed him. Such calm composure could only arise from one of two possibilities: either he had secluded himself from the cultivation world for so long that he did not grasp its hierarchies, or he was no ordinary individual.
“It is we who intrude upon Brother Gu,” Yu Si interjected promptly, clearing his throat when he noticed Gu Guangming’s increasingly probing gaze. “This young friend was entrusted to me by Daoist Bai Hao before his ascension. He has cultivated in seclusion for many years and only recently emerged. He has remained at the peak of the Golden Core stage for decades without breakthrough. I recently divined that his opportunity to overcome this bottleneck may lie within the First Immortal Sect, and thus we have come to seek your assistance.”
Such matters were not uncommon. After entering the Golden Core stage, each breakthrough became exceedingly difficult, and opportunities arose in countless strange ways. If one sect could lend assistance to another, few would refuse.
After all, forming good ties was always beneficial. The path of cultivation was long, and who could say whether one might need help in the future?
Hearing that Ling Xiao had secluded himself for years, Gu Guangming found it aligned with his own conjecture. Observing the young man’s quiet, restrained demeanor, typical of a sword cultivator, he concluded that he had perhaps overthought the matter.
Waving a hand generously, Sect Master Gu said, “Naturally we will assist. Daoist Bai Hao has lectured and discussed swordsmanship in our sect many times. We are practically one family. With your connection as well, Brother Yu may rest assured and leave this child to me.”
“Then I am grateful, Sect Master.” Yu Si relaxed somewhat before asking, “May I inquire how you intend to arrange Ling Xiao’s placement?”
Gu Guangming considered. “In half a month, our sect will hold its grand ceremony. Ling Xiao may simply make an appearance then. As Daoist Bai Hao’s adopted son, his seniority is high, and it would be inappropriate for him to formally take a master here. We shall register him under the main peak as an exchange Disciple from another sect for the time being.”
Only then did Yu Si truly breathe easier, silently pleased that invoking Daoist Bai Hao’s seniority had ensured Gu Guangming would not attempt to accept Ling Xiao as a personal disciple.
His gaze flicked toward the young man beside him. Ling Xiao sat upright as a pine, eyes lowered, appearing every bit the composed and obedient junior.
Thinking of his true identity, Yu Si felt his throat tighten and quickly averted his eyes.
In truth, he was likely the only person in the entire cultivation world who knew that this young man was not truly named Ling Xiao. That was merely an honorific. He was the Lingxiao Immortal Venerable of the Heavenly Realm, whose true name was Yu Chengyan.
As for the identity of Daoist Bai Hao’s adopted son, it had been carefully fabricated by Yu Si.
The fact that Yu Chengyan was an Immortal Venerable descended from the Heavenly Realm was already enough to shake the cultivation world. Yet compared to his true lineage, even that was insignificant.
He was the son of Sword Venerable Xie Jianbai.
The name of Xie Jianbai resounded across all realms. Though he had ascended nearly nine thousand years ago, his legend remained known in every world.
He had been a once-in-ten-thousand-years prodigy without equal. In an age of chaos and suffering, he had swept away millions of demons and devils with a single strike of his sword, restoring peace.
The cultivation world owed him countless debts of gratitude. To call him the grandmaster of all current cultivators would not be an exaggeration. Even the towering First Immortal Sect beneath their feet had been founded by him.
That single strike nine thousand years ago had left the demon and devil realms still struggling to recover, while cultivators grew stronger with each generation. It was Xie Jianbai who had personally ushered in the golden age of cultivation.
For the son of such a legendary figure, already an Immortal Venerable, to enter his father’s sect and formally take the current Sect Master or an elder as his master would be utter chaos. Fortunately, Yu Si thought with relief, that scenario had been avoided.
After agreeing to the arrangement, Gu Guangming ordered a private courtyard prepared for Yu Chengyan on the main peak. Yu Si personally accompanied him there.
Once inside the room, Yu Si cast a barrier around them and retrieved a mirror from his storage ring. The mirror floated in midair and soon expanded to half a person’s height.
Murmuring incantations, he watched as ripples spread across its surface like water. Soon, a figure appeared within, clad in a robe patterned with starlight, light shimmering along the sleeves, clearly no longer a mortal being.
Yu Si bowed deeply. “Immortal Lord Xinghan, the matter concerning Lord Yu has been properly arranged.”
Immortal Lord Xinghan inclined his head slightly. Perceptive as ever, Yu Si withdrew.
Only after the room was empty did Xinghan sigh. “From the moment you appeared, even with my power, I can no longer divine the threads of the future. I do not know whether this change is auspicious or ominous.”
“Thank you,” Yu Chengyan replied.
Gazing at the young man whose features bore a striking resemblance to Celestial Lord Zheqing and whose temperament was equally cold and restrained, Xinghan felt a strange disorientation.
Before this youth’s arrival, he had never imagined that the aloof and heartless Celestial Lord Zheqing would fall in love, let alone have a son.
And according to Yu Chengyan’s own explanation, this young Immortal Venerable had come from three thousand years in the future and would one day be Xinghan’s superior.
Looking at the subordinate who had not yet even been born in this era, Xinghan said quietly, “Celestial Lord Zheqing will soon descend to the mortal realm for his tribulation. Should we perhaps inform him—”
Before he could finish, Yu Chengyan’s expression darkened instantly. “There is no need to tell him. He has no right to interfere.”
Xinghan thought to himself that the relationship between father and son did not seem harmonious.
Then again, given that man’s temperament, a warm and filial bond would have been the true rarity.
Suppressing his curiosity, Xinghan said, “Lord Yu, you came here from three thousand years in the future and sought my assistance. I assume that means you trust me?”
“Yes.”
“In that case, can you tell me what you intend to do?” Xinghan continued. “Your presence may alter the evolution of countless worlds. A single step astray could lead to cascading changes. This concerns me greatly. If I know in advance, I can prepare accordingly.”
Yu Chengyan remained silent for a long while.
At last, he said in a low voice, “I intend to prevent my father and mother from falling in love.”
A thunderous boom split the heavens.
At his words, a rolling bolt of lightning tore from the Heavenly Realm down to the mortal world. Stars dimmed and all things trembled.
There were four supreme Celestial Lords in the Heavenly Realm who governed all worlds, and Xie Jianbai was one of them. For figures of such stature, even the slightest shift in destiny could shake the cosmos.
Now, his son from three thousand years in the future had appeared, seeking to rewrite his fate.
Xinghan looked down upon the vast river of stars. Yu Chengyan’s arrival was like a stone cast into water, sending ripples outward. The established pattern was already shifting, and the future had become murky and unreadable.
The last time such an unfathomable upheaval had occurred was when Xie Jianbai himself had been born.
Meeting the young man’s resolute gaze through the mirror, Xinghan felt a headache coming on.
“May I ask one more question,” he said quietly. “Your insistence on entering the First Immortal Sect… is it related to your mother?”
“Yes.” This time Yu Chengyan answered swiftly. “Will Xinghan attempt to stop me?”
“I am but a minor star official. How could I intervene?” Xinghan replied with a wry smile.
Afterward, Xinghan kept Yu Si behind for a few additional words.
The Heavenly Arts practiced by the Star Plucking Pavilion traced back to a scripture Xinghan himself had written during a mortal tribulation in a past life. In that sense, he was their ancestral master. The pavilion even enshrined his portrait, which was how he had been able to contact them.
“The next century may see turbulent change,” Xinghan warned. “If your divinations reveal unusual signs, do not dwell on them. Adapt to circumstances. If Lord Ling Xiao requires assistance, help him, but keep your distance and protect yourself.”
Thinking of Yu Chengyan’s intentions, Xinghan felt numb.
When immortals clash, mortals suffer.
He could not help but wonder what sort of extraordinary woman could capture the heart of Celestial Lord Zheqing and yet drive their son to sever their destined bond.
He dearly wished to tell Yu Si to report any new developments immediately, but mindful of his dignity as an ancestral master, he restrained his curiosity.
Yu Si, reading his expression, lowered his head respectfully. “If Lord Ling Xiao makes any progress, this junior will inform the Immortal Lord at once.”
Xinghan was deeply gratified. As expected of his disciple, truly promising.