Outside, the leader walked to an open space and, with a wave of his hand, summoned a massive ship into the air.
Cairen was surprised, recalling what he had read about spatial rings in the book. Surprisingly, the sect leader had one.
The ship was large, with fifteen seats on each side and a single seat at the front, where Elder Xu appeared quickly.
The others boarded swiftly and chose their seats. The other two elders sat in the front row near Elder Xu and began discussing the location of the inheritance.
Cairen took a few extra seconds before boarding, carefully observing the ship before climbing aboard. Then, when he did, he decided on one of the last seats, away from everyone else.
Without warning, the ship lifted into the air.
The leader said a few final words and wished them good luck before handing a dark green-colored vial to each disciple, including Cairen.
Then, the ship's speed increased until Cairen felt the wind strongly hitting his face. He looked back at the sect, now receding into the distance, and for the first time saw the full extent of the sect. It was truly enormous. But nothing compared to the size of the world he was in now.
…
The ship sliced through the wind at high speed, and Cairen watched the clouds moving rapidly above him. Some time had passed since they left the sect.
Suddenly, as he was looking at the forest below, a girl with dark brown hair tied in a high ponytail sat beside him with a smile on her face.
"How old are you?" she asked, leaning slightly toward Cairen.
"Sixteen. I'll be seventeen in a few days."
"Really? You don't look it. You're quite tall… and handsome. Well, you can call me big sister., I swear I'll protect you if you do." She said with an even bigger smile.
"Thank you. But I'm not so weak as to need protection."
"How cute. You know, Cairen, the moment I saw you in the hall, I set my eyes on you. You're so handsome."
She said while looking at his face, which was slightly turned at the moment.
"Black hair, but with a silver sheen, not too long, not too short. It's messy from the wind, but it somehow suits you."
"Extremely pale skin, without any blemishes, which with the dark blue inner disciple robes, makes you look very attractive. But what really stands out are… those eyes."
"My eyes?" Cairen asked, feeling strange, no one had ever complimented him like that before, but it wasn't a bad feeling.
He then saw her face flush slightly before she gave a soft cough.
"Oops, my thoughts were a bit too loud. But yes, your eyes. Completely black. You can't distinguish between the iris and the pupil. As if they absorb light." She said, staring deeply into his eyes.
Cairen looked back at her, tilting his head slightly to the side.
"Really?" he asked, confused.
"What? Yes? You didn't know? I've never seen eyes like that before." She replied, also puzzled by Cairen's reaction.
Cairen thought for a moment and decided he should see his appearance for himself. Then he thought of something and asked.
"Why does that other girl look at me with such hostility? I've never seen her before, and I'm sure she doesn't know me either."
The 'Big Sister' laughed.
"Oh, her. Well, before you, there was the sixth core disciple. Her little boyfriend, he died two weeks ago, and because of that, we avenged him, completely destroying the one who dared touch one of ours. Amazing, right?" she asked, sounding proud of herself and the others.
"But, well, she's the one who suffered most from the sixth's death. I bet she thinks now that you're weak or not talented enough to take his place. She's just being stupid, I think. Don't worry too much. If you have the strength and talent the leader mentioned, she'll stop soon."
Then she leaned close to his ear and whispered.
"Besides, you might even take advantage of it, you know… she's single, angry, frustrated, and sad. Doesn't sound like someone hard to—"
Cairen turned his face to her with a serious expression.
The girl laughed and quickly pulled her face away.
"Just kidding, I was just joking."
'Tsk, this girl.' Cairen realized she had kind of a difficult personality.
At that moment, Elder Xu suddenly approached.
"Cairen, you are free to use your full strength in the inheritance site. No need to hold back. If you obtain the inheritance, that's the best outcome, but if not, your life is more important than anything."
"If any information leaks, the leader and the sect will find a way to protect you. But inside, people from other forces may enter, show no mercy to enemies."
"Understood, Elder Xu." Cairen nodded seriously.
Elder Xu then returned to his seat.
Cairen had no intention of hiding anyway. But the elder's words made the other disciples even more curious about him, though no one asked anything.
No one except Mei Ran. That was the name of the chatty girl beside him. He found out that the so-called 'Big Sister' was only seventeen, just a bit older than him.
The journey continued while the two talked. Mei Ran was the fourth core disciple. She also gave the names of the other eight and explained a bit about each one.
Cairen was very grateful, and she told him he could repay her by taking her to a nice restaurant when they returned.
After several hours, the scenery changed. Then a ridiculously large mountain appeared before them, none of the mountains near the Three Poisons Sect even came close to it.
And on the edge of that mountain, in an apparently ordinary place, there was a bluish-green light seeming to come down from the sky about thirty meters off the ground.
"The inheritance…" Mei Ran murmured, but her brow was furrowed, looking at two other ships near the inheritance.
"Damn, the other sects have already discovered it." Elder Xu said from the front of the ship.
Gradually, they approached the other two ships near the entrance, where the bluish-green light, the Qi, was constantly flowing.
Cairen then clearly saw the other two ships. One had a flag with a golden sword as its symbol. The other, a symbol of a bluebird.
When the Three Poisons Sect's ship got close enough to be face-to-face with the others, two loud voices echoed.
"If it isn't Old Xu. You look more and more decrepit, my old friend. Poison is really wearing you down." A handsome man with blue hair spoke first.
"That's Elder Ye, from the Blue Sparrow Sect." Mei Ran whispered near Cairen's ear.
"Hmph, so it's you, blue vulture. I'd rather be an old decrepit man than use beauty pills to deceive my disciples. You disgust me." Elder Xu replied, making Cairen and the others laugh. The handsome man's face turned red, but before he could say anything, a voice came from the other ship.
"Old Xu, Old Xu, I see your mouth hasn't changed after all these years. But the blue vulture's not entirely wrong. Looks like your life's nearing its end. What a shame." An old man with a golden sword without a scabbard at his waist said, stroking his fully gray beard.
If it were before, he would've been furious at that. But now, he had found a way to save himself. After studying Cairen's blood, he had a chance to ascend to the next realm and live a few more years. Because of that, his expression remained unchanged.
"That's Elder Han, from the Golden Sword Sect." Mei Ran said, leaning even closer to Cairen, now their shoulders were touching.
"Looks like your eyes are getting blinder, just like your sword. Must be your age. That's really sad." Elder Xu said with pity.
Then a long argument began, full of old rivalry and unrestrained insults. But suddenly, something interrupted the elders' bickering.
A new ship appeared, it was twice the size of Cairen's and far more luxurious, made of polished wood with silver carvings. The disciples of the three sects were surprised.
"Of course… if all three sects found out, there's no way the royal family would let this slide." Mei Ran muttered beside Cairen.
The royal ship slowly approached. Unlike the three sects' ships with over ten people, this one had only six.
An extremely short old man stood at the front, his white beard so long it reached the ship's floor. Cairen felt a pressure from him that he had only felt from the sect leader, but this was even a bit stronger.
Standing behind the old man were five youths, four men in luxurious clothes with similar appearances, their hair varying shades of light gray.
But what truly caught everyone's attention, especially Cairen's, whose eyes were instantly drawn, was the girl standing in front of the four young men.
She was stunning, with silver hair, and even taller than the boys behind her. But what really drew his attention was a horn growing from her forehead, with strange markings that moved slowly.
Cairen felt an immediate pull, it wasn't good or bad, but it was strong. And just like him, the girl felt it too. She looked curiously in his direction.
Their eyes met, and both shared the same thought.
'She has an awakened bloodline!'
'He has an awakened bloodline!'
She quickly looked away and whispered something to the old man.
The old man listened, his expression shifting to surprise as his eyes fell directly on Cairen.
He moved the royal ship a little closer to Cairen's and then greeted Elder Xu. Not warmly, but not hostilely either. That alone made the other elders curious, besides their sect leaders, that old man wouldn't greet anyone.
"Who is the young man ?" the old man asked, without taking his eyes off Cairen.
Elder Xu remained calm, but inside, he was worried.
'Shit, he sensed the boy's bloodline. The princess must have felt it.'
"This is Cairen, the new core disciple of my Three Poisons Sect." He replied calmly.
"Interesting…" the old man responded, looking at Cairen a moment longer before turning his attention away. No one knew what he was thinking. But for Elder Xu, that was enough for now.
Unlike the old man, Princess Ling didn't look away from Cairen. She kept staring until Mei Ran, beside him, asked in a low voice.
"Do you know Princess Ling?"
"No! I've never seen her in my life."