Outside the Yaoguang Sacred Ground, the crowd watched from afar as the nine jade flood dragons pulled the Jade Emperor Carriage grandly into the sacred ground, their eyes filled with wariness.
“Merely the imperial son of the Heavenly One Immortal Sect, and when he travels, he has two nirvana realm experts guarding him. One of them is terrifyingly powerful, slaying an equal-level opponent with effortless ease. Such a retinue… is this the depth of the Heavenly One Immortal Sect’s heritage?”
“I just can’t fathom it. What does a piddling little Yaoguang Sacred Ground have that warrants the Heavenly One Immortal Sect’s attention? Even their ancestor is dead. What could they possibly offer that would tempt the immortal sect?”
“Could they have offered up their saintess?”
“That damn Su Yunhai, all upright on the surface, but behind everyone’s backs, he’s selling out his own daughter for glory!”
“Now that the Yaoguang Sacred Ground has been taken over by the Heavenly One Immortal Sect, there’s nothing left here for us. Let’s disperse!”
Many rogue cultivators lost interest and waved their hands as they departed.
But among the three great sacred ground families, not a single person left.
At that moment, atop a lone peak outside the Yaoguang Sacred Ground, the three ancestors of Tianxuan, Tianji, and the Qin Clan stood with hands clasped behind their backs, their gazes deep and unreadable.
“Fellow Daoist brothers, the imperial son has arrived. The Yaoguang Sacred Ground will soon be taken over by the Heavenly One Immortal Sect. Even if we stay, we won’t gain anything. We might even provoke the imperial son’s ire.”
“Are you two not leaving?”
The Tianxuan Ancestor regarded the other two and smiled lightly.
“Hehe. When even Fellow Daoist Tianxuan isn’t rushing to leave, there’s even less reason for us to rush.”
“Isn’t that right, Brother Qin?”
The Tianji Ancestor chuckled coldly.
The Qin Clan Ancestor scoffed.
“There are no outsiders here. This whole affair is as plain as a louse on a bald man’s head. Why beat around the bush?”
“The imperial son may have come to the Yaoguang Sacred Ground, but he never said he was here to protect them. Otherwise, he would have driven us off already, not merely told us to clear a path.”
“As for the imperial son’s true stance, that remains to be seen.”
“It will depend on whether the Yaoguang Sacred Ground can produce a treasure impressive enough to move the imperial son. Judging from the current situation, that’s most unlikely.”
The other two exchanged a glance.
“How so? The immortal jade spirit body is a treasure capable of driving every man in the Desolate Ancient Continent mad with desire. The imperial son may be the Youth Supreme, but he’s still a man. If Su Moyan lowered herself and threw herself into his arms, I reckon… no man could resist.”
The Tianxuan Ancestor said, a knowing smile on his lips.
The Qin Clan Ancestor shot him a sideways look.
“You old fox. You know perfectly well why!”
“If the immortal jade spirit body were really as wonderful as you say, how has it survived to this day?”
“The so-called immortal jade spirit body looks precious, but it’s really just a white elephant. Those who covet it can’t afford to offend the Yaoguang Sacred Ground. And the powers capable of intimidating the Yaoguang Sacred Ground all have great emperors anchoring them.”
“What is the fortune of an immortal jade spirit body compared to the personal guidance of a great emperor?”
“Ordinary clan scions understand this. Let alone… him. He’s the imperial son of the Heavenly One Immortal Sect…”
“Watch. The imperial son’s arrival won’t bring the Yaoguang Sacred Ground back from the dead. It’s merely their final death rattle!”
With that, the Qin Clan Ancestor closed his eyes and, using the Qin Clan’s secret art, sent a voice transmission to every member of the Qin Clan.
Hold your positions. Stay on alert.
…
Meanwhile, the Jade Emperor Carriage descended upon the Yaoguang Sacred Ground. The sacred lord Su Yunhai led a grand procession to welcome them.
“Greetings, Imperial Son!”
The fourth-layer nirvana realm Yaoguang Sacred Lord knelt on one knee before Jiang Wuhen, his manner deeply respectful.
Jiang Wuhen gave him a cursory glance, murmured a brief acknowledgment, and walked straight past Su Yunhai.
His gaze swept over the crowd behind Su Yunhai.
Suddenly, amidst them, he spotted a woman in a pale blue gown. Ethereal and graceful, her bearing otherworldly like a celestial maiden from a painting, she stood respectfully behind Su Yunhai.
Just then—
[Ding! Daughter of Destiny detected: Su Moyan!]
The instant the notification sounded, Jiang Wuhen’s gaze toward Su Moyan turned burning hot.
If nothing’s changed, she should be the daughter of fortune in Lin Chen’s storyline.
That face, that figure, that pure and untouchable aura. Textbook heroine setup.
Jiang Wuhen thought to himself.
Generally speaking, with heroines of this archetype, the colder they were before you won them over, the more devoted they became after.
Meanwhile, Su Moyan noticed Jiang Wuhen’s scorching gaze. He was staring at her openly, his eyes as if they wanted to devour her whole.
Seeing this, Su Moyan’s delicate body trembled. Her pretty face paled, and she instinctively lowered her head.
The three great sacred ground families, my Yaoguang Sacred Ground can still put up a fight. But Jiang Wuhen represents the Heavenly One Immortal Sect. If he makes a move against me, wouldn’t that mean…
At this thought, Su Moyan clenched her teeth. Fear and grievance flickered through her icy gaze.
At the same time, the others around them noticed Jiang Wuhen’s lapse in composure. Yet every one of them stared at their own noses and pretended to see nothing.
Even the Yaoguang Sacred Lord could only stand there, his face full of awkwardness, not daring to speak for fear of interrupting Jiang Wuhen’s thoughts and angering him.
Only Mu Yunxi looked from Jiang Wuhen to Su Moyan, and her frustration spiked. She furrowed her little brow.
What are you looking at? What’s so good to look at? He promised to love only me in this life, and now he’s making that face at another girl!
Hmph! Still staring! His eyeballs are about to pop out!
Mu Yunxi clenched her little pink fists, cursing Jiang Wuhen a hundred times in her head.
And the next moment—
“Imperial Son, you’ve had a long and tiring journey. Let the Yaoguang Sacred Lord arrange a residence for you to rest properly first.”
“Your humble servant will attend to you…”
Mu Yunxi’s face bloomed like a flower as she reached out with her slender, jade-like hands and gently placed them on Jiang Wuhen’s shoulders.
Then she squeezed. Hard.
“Hss!”
Jiang Wuhen winced in pain and snapped out of his daze.
Moments ago, he had been running through no fewer than a hundred ways to milk villain points from this new daughter of fortune.
Now, reminded by Mu Yunxi, he played along and cleared his throat. “Yaoguang Sacred Lord. I’ve come as a guest to the Yaoguang Sacred Ground, yet you’ve left me standing here all this time. Tell me, am I not welcome?”
Jiang Wuhen’s tone was stiff. Su Yunhai’s body trembled, and he hastily explained.
“Please calm yourself, Imperial Son. We have already prepared a residence for Your Highness.”
“This way, Imperial Son!”
Su Yunhai led the way personally, his manner exceedingly respectful.
He was not a man given to groveling, but this time, for the sake of the Yaoguang Sacred Ground, personal honor and dignity counted for nothing.
As they walked, Jiang Wuhen sensed no sign whatsoever of Lin Chen.
With no other choice, he turned his attention to Su Yunhai.
“Yaoguang Sacred Ground, is there someone in your sect called Lin Chen?”
“He doesn’t seem to be here today.”
Jiang Wuhen asked casually.
Su Yunhai raised an eyebrow.
“Oh? The imperial son knows Lin Chen?”
“That young man hasn’t been with the Yaoguang Sacred Ground for long, but he’s become something of a legend within our ranks.”
“However, three months ago, he went out to train and hasn’t returned…”
Su Yunhai explained.
Gone out to train and hasn’t returned?
Just as expected. The son of fortune always waits for the most critical moment, after the villain has fully drawn everyone’s hatred, to make his shining entrance, trample the villain, and reap the glory and prestige.
Judging from that crumbling final layer of the guardian grand formation, if he hadn’t stepped in to stop things, it would have lasted at most another day.
Which means this Lin Chen has one day left before he returns.
Jiang Wuhen murmured to himself.
Soon, Jiang Wuhen and the others settled into the temporary palace Su Yunhai had prepared in advance. Jiang Wuhen waved his hand, dismissing the Yaoguang Sacred Ground’s attendants.
But the moment he closed the door, he felt a cold presence behind him.
His instinctive sense of danger made the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end.
He spun around to see Mu Yunxi holding a small white jade sword, her face shadowed and her smile far from warm.
“Wuhen. Was she pretty?”
