Chapter 298 Departure! Target: Central State
The next day.
Not long after the first rays of morning sunlight pierced through the cloud layers, the sky above Immortal Spirit City suddenly darkened.
"Why has the sky gone dark?"
An old man selling sugar figurines by the street looked up, and the sugar ladle in his hand fell into the pot with a clang.
The common people of the entire city stopped the work in their hands and looked up toward the sky—
A bronze flying vessel that covered the sky and blocked the sun was slowly sailing out of the Immortal Spirit Sacred Land!
The thousand-zhang-long hull glowed with an ancient bronze luster. The bow was carved with a lifelike dragon head, and its whiskers danced in the wind, as if it were about to let out a heaven-shaking dragon roar at any moment.
The spiritual patterns on both sides of the hull flowed like living creatures, and every flicker caused the spiritual energy within a radius of a hundred miles to tremble.
Nearly half of Immortal Spirit City was shrouded in the shadow of the flying vessel, like a giant whale swimming past.
"Heavens above..."
The wife of the silk shop owner went weak in the knees and sat kneeling on the threshold.
"Th-this, this is bigger than our entire street!"
On the second floor of the teahouse, the tea cups in the hands of a few disciples wearing the attire of other sects fell to the ground with a plop.
Suddenly, countless starlight-like runes lit up at the bottom of the flying vessel, casting mottled light and shadows on the city wall.
A few children lying on the roof to watch the excitement cried out "Wow" and reached out to grab those flowing spots of light.
The entire city trembled slightly, and the copper bells under the eaves jingled.
Aunt Zhang, who sold buns in the West Market, suddenly slapped her thigh.
"Oh my! Such a beautiful boat; if a piece of paint were to fall off, it would probably be enough to buy the whole street, right?"
Her words drew a roar of laughter from the surroundings, but everyone's eyes flashed with the same shock and pride!
The flying vessel slowly sailed toward the depths of the sea of clouds, its bronze hull gradually dyed gold by the morning sun, and finally transforming into a resplendent speck of light on the horizon.
It was only at this moment that the entire city seemed to be released from a body-binding spell, erupting with one after another exclamation of surprise.
The outer sect disciples in the teahouse still stood dumbfounded before the window, unable to come back to their senses for a long time.
...
This sky-obscuring bronze flying vessel was precisely Chen Chang'an's handiwork—obtained from a system sign-in reward.
Its name was the "Grand Void Crossing Tribulation Boat," and it was a genuine top-tier spiritual artifact.
At this moment, this massive object was tearing through the sea of clouds, carving out a resplendent trajectory of spiritual light in the sky ten thousand zhang high.
Xiao Chen, clad in a black Sect Master robe, stood with hands clasped behind his back at the bow of the vessel.
The strong wind blew fiercely, causing the dark gold cloud patterns on his robe to flow like water ripples.
Standing behind him on both sides were five people: Han Yu, Jiang Che, Ji Lingxiu, Chen Xingcai, and Lin Wan.
Li Hanzhou was temporarily acting as the Sect Master and had remained within the sect.
Since the inner sect disciples were all out on trials, and the five newly promoted true disciples had not yet formally acknowledged a master, this time no one from the inner sect was participating.
Meanwhile, several dozen Immortal Spirit Guards were working together to maneuver this massive flying vessel.
"Spiritual pressure on the port side is stable!"
"Wind talisman in the Xun position has been activated!"
Amidst the rising and falling shouts of command, twelve pairs of bronze wings suddenly unfolded on both sides of the flying vessel. Every single feather was carved with totems of ancient ferocious beasts.
When the wings fully extended, the sea of clouds within a radius of a hundred miles was torn open, creating a vacuum channel a thousand miles long.
At the same time, the sky of the entire Xuan Ying Continent became extraordinarily lively.
Countless flying vessels of all sizes soared into the sky, their trajectories piercing the vast sky, weaving a giant net covering the four wilds and eight wastelands amidst the clouds.
And these flying vessels spanning heaven and earth would all finally converge toward the same destination:
—The Celestial Capital City of Central State.
...
Lin Wan (Chen Chang'an) stood before the porthole of the flying vessel, watching the sea of clouds retreat like tidal waves on both sides, and the corner of her mouth unconsciously curled into a faint smile.
This was the first time he was traveling openly alongside his disciples in the identity of "Martial Aunt."
At the rear of the top deck of the flying vessel, a red sandalwood door carved with star and moon patterns silently slid open, revealing the cabin exclusive to the Supreme Elder.
The moment one stepped inside, the cloud-patterned brocade carpet beneath their feet automatically glowed with spiritual light, and every step created rippling circles.
The dome was over three zhang high, and a transparent skylight carved from a single piece of Northern Sea ice crystal captured the entire starry river.
On the left was a wall-to-wall curio shelf displaying rare treasures from various prefectures. On the right, a green jade table held a gilded incense burner that was currently puffing out the "Nine-Turn Spirit-Calming Incense," worth thousands in gold.
On a mica screen floating before the window, the magnificent scene of the ten-thousand-mile cloud waves outside the flying vessel was displayed in real-time.
What was most staggering was the central cloud bed—on a bed frame carved from an entire ten-thousand-year spiritual tree were spread seven layers of brocade mattresses made of different materials.
The top layer, made of snow silkworm silk, would sink half a foot with a light press, yet instantly recovered its original shape upon getting up.
Chen Chang'an could not help reaching out to touch the night-glowing pearls embedded in the bedposts; each was the size of a fist, and at this moment, they were automatically adjusting their brightness according to the outside light.
The first-class cabins of those luxury cruise ships in his previous life were simply like cramped storage rooms compared to this place.
"Are you satisfied, Martial Aunt?"
Ji Lingxiu's voice came from outside the door. Behind her followed twelve maids wearing moon-white gauze skirts, and in the glass trays each held were spiritual fruits, fragrant tea, and even steaming hot towels.
Ji Lingxiu smiled faintly and signaled the maids to put down the items.
"If Martial Aunt needs anything, just ring the jade bell to summon them at any time."
Chen Chang'an watched the maids' demeanor where not a fold of their skirts was out of place as they walked, and the tea and snacks arranged instantly on the table, secretly sighing in admiration.
As expected of a princess raised by the imperial family; even a temporary residence on a flying vessel could be arranged to provide imperial enjoyment.
After everyone had withdrawn, he let his whole body sink into the cloud bed.
Outside the porthole, a thin cloud drifted past, condensing into fine droplets on the ice crystal skylight, which were soon evaporated by a hidden formation.
...
However, the only thing giving him a headache was that Chen Xingcai insisted on choosing the room next to his.
Although the time was short, observing his daughter from a different perspective was like suddenly lifting the nest of a well-behaved little rabbit and discovering an arsenal hidden underneath.
Those soft and cute manners she pretended to have in front of him, he now realized, were actually mostly feigned.
In these short interactions, he had gradually begun to discover the unknown other side of his daughter—if this daughter were cut open, perhaps more than half of her would be black.
Exactly who taught my little Xingcai to be like this?
Chen Chang'an sighed.
...
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