"You stay, then I'll stay too! Father, hurry and take them away!"
Yun Hui picked up his artifact, resolutely aiming it toward the sky.
Yun Dehe raised his hand and knocked him on the head. "You fool, opening the sect-protecting formation requires only one person. If you dare waste another breath, I'll hand you over to those Spirit Realm cultivators myself!"
Yun Hui clutched his head and wailed, unwillingly following the main group as they retreated.
…
Central Domain.
Wuxiang Sect.
"This is the Heaven Ladder that connects to the Spirit Realm. It should only appear after a cultivator successfully passes Tribulation, yet now it has been forcibly summoned. Such a thing has not occurred in tens of thousands of years!"
Han Huijun gazed up at the endless Heaven Ladder bathed in multicolored radiance, sorrow filling his eyes.
"Who would have thought Wuxiang Sect would decline in my hands? When my master handed me the sect master's order, he never asked me to accomplish greatness, only not to bring disaster. Yet I have failed him…"
"Senior Brother need not repent so soon. The former sect master may not have ascended to the Immortal Realm. If Spirit Realm cultivators make trouble in the Lower Realm, even the Patriarchs who already ascended from our sect will not forgive them."
Shen Yuefu's tone remained cold and detached. His gaze did not waver at the sight of the Heaven Ladder. His expression was as if today's bizarre phenomenon did not exist, unchanged from any ordinary day.
Han Huijun, however, was shaken when he saw brilliant spiritual light burst forth from the Heavenly Secrets Pavilion. His divine sense followed the Ladder upward, and suddenly his pupils contracted.
"Junior Brother, there are people coming down the Ladder!"
"The Ladder's appearance naturally means someone is descending," Shen Yuefu replied, puzzled why his Senior Brother spoke such an obvious truth.
Han Huijun raised a trembling finger, pointing at the figures upon the Ladder. "Look at those eyes, don't they resemble the sect master of Miaoyun Sect from two generations ago?!"
Shen Yuefu lifted his gaze briefly, then lowered his lashes again.
"Senior Brother, has the sect-protecting formation been activated?"
Han Huijun struck his own head in regret. "Right, right, I must open it quickly. That lazy old fox of Miaoyun Sect will never spare us otherwise!"
As Han Huijun dashed off, Shen Yuefu's cold eyes flickered faintly, and he exhaled a sigh nearly imperceptible.
"He only saw Miaoyun Sect's former sect master, yet failed to notice standing beside him was the Yuchi clan's Ancestor…"
The heavens themselves can no longer remain unchanged.
…
Northern Sea.
Holy Palace.
Wan Huaiyuan stared in shock at the Heaven Ladder above the Holy Palace. An old man slowly descended, smiling warmly at him.
"Wan Daoyou, it has truly been a long time. Why is it that you have grown as old as I am?"
The old man stroked his graying beard. His brows were kind, his tone gentle.
Yet Qian Zhi suddenly shivered, bewildered. "Grand Elder, do you know him?"
"Know him? More than just that…"
Wan Huaiyuan's legs turned cold, his face drained of blood as though he had been frozen into ice.
Qian Zhi shoved him, but his body was colder than stone.
"Grand Elder, what's wrong with you? Don't scare me like this!"
"Hehe, do not worry, he is fine. With this natural barrier protecting the Holy Palace, I cannot kill him even if I wished to."
Between them stood a thin, almost fragile barrier, like paper. Yet it was unbreakable.
The old man's eyes gleamed without malice, though his words were merciless.
As Qian Zhi shook him, Wan Huaiyuan's face gradually regained a trace of blood.
His throat rasped, voice hoarse.
"Sect master of Wuxiang Sect, why are you here? What connection do you have with those black-robed poisoners?"
Qian Zhi's face blanched. "Grand Elder, who did you say he was?"
"Hehe, so many years have passed. Has the Holy Palace declined to the point where you alone still recognize me?"
The old man smiled, though his eyes were devoid of warmth.
Qian Zhi trembled violently. No wonder his heart recoiled the instant he saw this man. He was the former sect master of Wuxiang Sect!
Wan Huaiyuan stiffly stepped closer, stopping at the barrier. "Sect Master Mo, what is the meaning of this? Why not stay properly in the Spirit Realm, but instead descend with a crowd to our Northern Sea?"
"Indeed, from the look of things, you plan to swallow up the entire Northern Sea!" Qian Zhi muttered in terror.
Mo Rui stroked his beard and smiled faintly. "So you've seen through me already. It won't be easy to trick you into opening this barrier."
"…So you truly mean to attack our Holy Palace!"
Wan Huaiyuan steadied himself with effort. "You have already ascended to the Spirit Realm, no longer of this world. If you commit slaughter here, Heaven's punishment will surely strike you down!"
Mo Rui nodded mildly. "You are right. If we kill, Heaven's punishment is unavoidable."
Qian Zhi blinked. "Then why did you just say you wanted to kill the Grand Elder?"
Wan Huaiyuan was equally puzzled.
Mo Rui chuckled. "At my level, making you die does not require me to act personally."
Dong dong dong!
Wan Huaiyuan, Qian Zhi, and several Holy Palace disciples retreated deeper into the palace, widening their distance.
"Mo Rui, the defenses of the Holy Palace are beyond your ability to break. Even the sect-protecting array of Wuxiang Sect cannot compare to this natural barrier!"
Mo Rui slowly extended his hand, placing it within a foot of the barrier.
"I have heard of this natural barrier. It is said to be the most indestructible array of this realm. Even nine cultivators at the late stage of Divine Transformation could not harm it in the slightest…"
"Then you should know better. Return whence you came! Our Holy Palace is blessed by Heaven's favor, you cannot possibly enter!"
Qian Zhi glared at him, shouting.
Mo Rui's lips curved faintly.
"However, after so long in the Spirit Realm, I happened upon something. With it, I can break this barrier."
Wan Huaiyuan rasped, voice dry. "Nothing in this world can restrain it!" Yet unease weighed heavier in his heart.
"Is that so? That is only because you Lower Realm people have too little knowledge."
Mo Rui slowly revealed an object, raising it into the air.
Wan Huaiyuan's breath caught. "That… that is…"
"Jianmu!" Qian Zhi cried out.
Mo Rui smiled. "Correct, Jianmu. Even a small piece is enough. With time, I can shatter this barrier and enter the Holy Palace without shedding a single drop of blood."
Wan Huaiyuan swayed, nearly collapsing.
"Grand Elder, what should we do?" Qian Zhi rushed to steady him, panic written on his face.
Mo Rui's gaze swept the palace. "By the way, where is your Holy Maiden? Why has she not come forth to greet this old man?"
Displeasure flickered in his tone, as if he were being slighted.
"Our Holy Maiden has long since—" Qian Zhi nearly blurted the truth, that the Holy Maiden was gone.
Wan Huaiyuan snapped, "Silence! Our Holy Maiden is in the palace. She has not gone anywhere!"