"It was Dao Ancestor! A great power from the ancient Mythological Era!"
"We actually had the fortune to encounter a Celestial Venerable? And we even opposed him? This is truly..."
A storm of emotions churned in the cultivators' hearts—relief, fear, delight, confusion. The tangled feelings left them dazed.
Only after a long while did the cultivators come back to their senses.
"From what you said just now, it seems you know the Celestial Venerable?"
An old man from Jade Tripod Grotto-Heaven rose to his feet and looked at Ye Fan, Li Xiaoman, and the others, his eyes filled with shock.
"Yes!"
Ye Fan nodded and sighed inwardly. Dao Ancestor is also a figure from myth in our country. When we first met him, none of us knew he was Dao Ancestor. I even cursed at him.
At this point, Ye Fan shook his head with a bitter smile. "Fortunately, Dao Ancestor did not hold a minor offense against me. When we climbed the ancient mountain, an accident occurred. It was thanks to Dao Ancestor saving us that we made it here alive."
"Yes, yes!"
Li Xiaoman added, "At the ancient temple, we encountered a demon. They said it was some kind of Demon Saint..."
"A Demon Saint!"
The cultivators all sucked in a sharp breath. This was a Saint-level existence! It could pluck stars and seize the moon, move mountains and fill seas—its power knew no bounds!
But they immediately remembered that, with a Celestial Venerable present, no Saint would amount to anything.
"Yes! That Demon Saint was incredibly powerful! Its body was taller than a mountain, and when it flew through the sky, it shaded the heavens and covered the sun."
Li Xiaoman patted her chest, still looking frightened. "Thankfully, Dao Ancestor appeared. Dao Ancestor was merciful and even urged the Demon Saint not to commit needless slaughter. But it refused to listen. It insulted Dao Ancestor and even wanted to eat us. Dao Ancestor casually tossed out a ring and lightly tapped the Demon Saint on the head. Then it died."
"A light tap, and it died!"
The cultivators broke out in cold sweat at those words. This was a Celestial Venerable! And she called that a light tap? Let him tap you once and see what happened!
Then everyone felt another wave of relief. Fortunately, the Celestial Venerable had not held anything against them! Otherwise, a single puff of breath would have left not even ashes behind.
"After Dao Ancestor killed that Demon Saint, he brought us here with him."
Ye Fan continued, "At the place where Miss Weiwei found us, we burned our life force and stimulated our potential, turning every one of us into an old person. Then Dao Ancestor waved his hand and restored us to how we are now."
"What incredible fortune! What incredible fortune! You truly possess immense fortune!"
The cultivators' eyes lit up as they looked at the group, praising them endlessly. "You were fortunate enough to travel with a Celestial Venerable and even received such blessings. That is truly good fortune cultivated over a past lifetime!"
"Yes! Your Bitter Seas have already been awakened, and every one of you has vigorous blood and overflowing spiritual radiance. Your paths of cultivation will surely be smooth sailing! We truly envy you."
"Unfortunately... our karmic fortune is still insufficient."
Li Xiaoman secretly glanced at Zhou Yi and let out a somewhat resentful sigh.
"Uh..."
The cultivators looked at Zhou Yi, then at everyone else, uncertain how to respond.
Fortune depended on whom one compared oneself to.
Compared with everyone else, Li Xiaoman and the others had indeed received tremendous blessings. But compared with Zhou Yi, the difference was like heaven and earth.
Zhou Yi was already a disciple under the Celestial Venerable. Such fortune was nothing compared to becoming the Celestial Venerable's disciple.
"Well... I was just lucky! Just lucky!"
Seeing the envious looks on everyone's faces, Zhou Yi felt greatly pleased, though he smiled and modestly said a few words.
Damn it, was this something that could be explained away by mere luck?
Everyone rolled their eyes at him irritably.
"All right, there is no need for you to be discouraged. Although your opportunities are somewhat inferior to Young Master Zhou's, once you enter an immortal sect, you will surely soar into the skies. Among the heroes of this age, there will certainly be a place for you. Why be so downhearted?"
"Exactly! Exactly! Rest assured. With your talent, once you enter an immortal sect, you will surely become Immortal Seedlings, nurtured as key disciples by the sects. You will definitely distinguish yourselves."
"Right! Right! With your talent, all the sect's resources will be directed toward you. Your future accomplishments will surely be extraordinary."
The cultivators all began persuading them, hoping to recruit them into their sects.
If Li Yu had not appeared, these cultivators would never have bothered to persuade or promise them anything. They would have simply divided the people up and taken them away, without caring in the least about the thoughts of a few mortals.
But things were different now. These people had become connected to a Celestial Venerable. Though the connection was not deep, one of them was a disciple of the Celestial Venerable! With such a connection, how could they still handle them as they pleased?
What followed was the six great sects each laying out their terms, offering benefits, and persuading everyone to join.
After a long, noisy commotion, Zhou Yi's classmates all found places to go.
Then came the farewells. The students scattered among the six great sects, each following a Sect Elder away on a beam of escape light.
In the end, Zhou Yi was the only one left in the entire courtyard.
"From Earth to the Big Dipper Starfield, the journey had been fraught with danger. Now that everyone had finally joined immortal sects, it could be considered a satisfying conclusion."
Zhou Yi stepped out of his room, watched the escaping lights vanish into the distance, and sighed inwardly.
"Compared with them, I entered under Dao Ancestor's tutelage, so my starting point is far higher than theirs. With the Supreme Heavenly Book to aid me, every step of my path ahead will surely be firm and steady."
Zhou Yi looked up at the starry sky, utterly different from that of Earth, and drew a deep breath. "Big Dipper Starfield! The world of cultivators. Let me properly witness its unique splendor!"
A streak of rosy light tore through the air with a howl and landed in the courtyard in an instant.
The rosy light faded, revealing Li Yu's ethereal, transcendent figure before Zhou Yi.
"Disciple Zhou Yi greets Patriarch."
When Zhou Yi saw Li Yu appear, he hurriedly bowed before him.
"Rise!"
Li Yu smiled and waved his hand. A gentle force lifted Zhou Yi to his feet.
"Patriarch, this disciple wishes to cultivate. Please impart the teachings to me!"
After rising, Zhou Yi looked eagerly at Li Yu. Having been accepted by Dao Ancestor, he was certain to receive endless benefits! Spiritual pills, miraculous medicines, divine techniques, secret arts—would they not all come at a mere wave of the hand?
"Hehe, do not rush!"
How could Li Yu not know what Zhou Yi was thinking? But whether he was selling systems, playing the role of a patriarch, or lending a helping hand, none of it was because he enjoyed helping others or wished to make selfless contributions.
Developing a customer, obtaining an endless stream of resources in the future, and gaining benefits—those were Li Yu's goals. Therefore, even if this was an initial investment, he could not let Zhou Yi develop the habit of receiving things for free.
"Zhou Yi, do you know what a Great Emperor is?"
Li Yu gave Zhou Yi a faintly smiling look. "Mighty enough to shake the world, with all four directions submitting, invincible beneath heaven—such is a Great Emperor. Do you wish to walk the Path of the Great Emperor? Do you wish to stand at the pinnacle of this world?"
"Yes! Of course this disciple does!"
Zhou Yi answered without hesitation. The Supreme Heavenly Book had originally given him a mission called the Path of the Great Emperor, and he had no choice but to contend for the position of Great Emperor. Thus, he answered Li Yu's question with absolute resolve.
"Then work hard!"
Li Yu laughed loudly, thinking inwardly, Kid, if you want to contend for the position of Great Emperor, you will have to seize resources everywhere and keep exchanging them. When the time comes, my gains will flow without end.