Every cultivator who came to attend the Communal Feast Convention knew that they were in Tianjiang Dragon Manor within the Xi Yue River.
This place had once been the dragon palace of the Flood Dragon Demon in the Xi Yue River.
But what they did not know was that they were not actually in Tianjiang Dragon Manor, but on an isolated island called Golden Egg Jade Island.
The island was named Golden Egg Jade because it did not exist in the present world, but parasitized the interior of a magical treasure.
The treasure was called the Golden Egg Jade Pearl, so the island had borrowed its name.
And this magical treasure was naturally in the hands of Mother Diviner True Person.
To many cultivators, the Communal Feast Convention was merely tempting to those whose cultivation was not particularly high. In truth, cultivators on Mother Diviner True Person's level would not even spare these resources a glance.
Thus, the Communal Feast Convention had become a gathering for juniors, an opportunity for those who had only just stepped onto the path of cultivation.
That was also why, for so many years, no one had known that the Communal Feast Convention was actually held on an isolated island rather than beneath the Xi Yue River.
But this Communal Feast Convention was an exception, because Mother Diviner True Person had specially invited an important figure.
In order to obtain this important figure's assistance, Mother Diviner True Person had even spared no effort in conducting a vast search. Only after more than a decade had she finally found and slain a Flood Dragon Demon.
The unimportant portions of the Flood Dragon Demon's flesh had been distributed among the cultivators attending the Communal Feast Convention, while the core parts were naturally reserved for the important figure Mother Diviner True Person had long yearned for.
At that moment, within a cavern deep in Golden Egg Jade Island.
It was dark and enclosed there, like an abyss.
Countless Muckworm Children guarded and patrolled the outer perimeter, their vigilance airtight.
At the center of their watch stood a stone grotto. The rock wall above it was covered in moss and dust, yet also bore floral carvings and Buddhist seals, blurred and indistinct, incomplete and broken.
This place should have been devoid of sunlight, yet it was suffused with utmost serenity—solemn and strange.
Wisps of green smoke occasionally drifted out from the cave, carrying a faint sandalwood fragrance before quickly vanishing into the depths of the darkness.
Behind an exquisite little incense burner, countless fist-sized eggs and fleshy sacs clung to the wall. These scalp-numbing, living-like tissues seemed fused together, forming a broad skirt of flesh.
Looking upward, above the flesh skirt was the upper body of a woman nearly half a zhang tall.
Her upper body was clearly that of an ordinary human woman, dressed normally, with bright eyes, pearly teeth, and a graceful figure.
Yet her lower body was enough to make anyone who saw it shudder from head to toe, a sight of overwhelming visual impact.
"It has been several decades since we last met. I trust Senior has been well? This junior, Mother Diviner, has always looked forward to Senior's arrival."
The woman who called herself Mother Diviner was the master of Golden Egg Jade Island, the renowned Mother Diviner True Person.
Her red lips parted in a faint smile. As she spoke, the skirt of egg-flesh beneath her gently stirred, rolling up two jade-white eggs and placing them before her. The jade eggs cracked, their golden-yellow liquid flowing into cups, and she pushed one of them toward the opposite side.
"I wonder whether Senior Fate Crane still remembers the rich fragrance of my Egg Yolk Tea?"
Opposite her, a slightly hunched figure sat cross-legged.
The contents of the cup gave off a faint golden glow. Within that dim light, the figure slowly leaned forward, and an aged hand lifted the cup, revealing his face at once.
He too possessed an utterly ordinary human body, clothed in coarse gray-white garments, but two bizarre and entirely different heads rested upon his shoulders.
One was the face of an ordinary old man, with an aged countenance, white brows and hair, frail with age, as though he had reached his twilight years.
The other was not human, though it was roughly the size of a human head. It had a sharp beak, a long bill, a cinnabar-red crown, and beneath its blackish-gray down, its two eyes brimmed with venom. It was the head of a crane.
"Hehehe, you vicious old hag. You invited this old man here only because you want help unlocking the ancient treasure beneath the Xi Yue River. Don't think calling this old man Senior means I'll show you a pleasant face."
"..."
The enormous crane head opened its beak and mocked Mother Diviner True Person without restraint. Its sharp voice seemed steeped in killing intent and viciousness, showing her not the slightest regard.
Mother Diviner True Person froze at once. Though she had been mentally prepared, she could not help but breathe a little faster beneath the mockery, and even the egg-flesh beneath her began to pulse faintly.
But setting aside the fact that she had invited Old Man Fate Crane herself, for the sake of what lay beneath that ancient treasure, she had to endure it no matter what.
Moreover, his cultivation had already reached the terrifying realm of half-step Corpse God, peak Flesh Decay. That alone was enough to ensure she would never dare show him any attitude.
Those who knew Old Man Fate Crane all knew that the Old Man had one body and two heads, one human and one crane, neither above nor below the other, inseparable as one person.
The crane head's words had always been vicious. It treated everyone the same, and often did not even spare the other head.
When she had met Old Man Fate Crane decades ago, she had been mocked and insulted by it. It was no different now.
Mother Diviner True Person could only offer a faint smile, doing her utmost to suppress her emotions and pretending she had heard nothing.
Those fellow cultivators who knew them both had always acknowledged the human head as Old Man Fate Crane, simply treating the crane head as though it did not exist.
"Shut up! Do not spout nonsense!"
At that moment, the other old man's head on Old Man Fate Crane's shoulder immediately spoke up in rebuke. Though his voice was somewhat aged, his calm tone brimmed with authority.
Even so, the crane head gave a cold laugh and mocked him mercilessly.
"Oh, oh, oh, the Old Man's heart hurts now, does it? Don't tell me you want to make a move on this old hag? You can stomach something covered head to toe in flesh tumors? When the time comes, you'd better twist this old man's head to the side. This old man does not want to be like you, so hungry that you'll eat whatever is at hand."
"..."
At the crane head's words, not only Mother Diviner True Person, but even the human head of Old Man Fate Crane had a vein bulge on its forehead.
The cave instantly sank into a silent, bizarre atmosphere.
Only after quite some time had passed, with neither side speaking, did the voice of a Muckworm Child suddenly sound from outside the entrance.
"True Person, the roster of cultivators for this convention has been compiled. Please review it."
The voice shattered the strange silence. Mother Diviner True Person took a deep breath and allowed the child to enter.
Very soon, a Muckworm Child slowly approached while carrying a stack of jade slips. It knelt before Mother Diviner True Person and respectfully presented them.
Only after the Muckworm Child withdrew did Mother Diviner True Person lightly wave her hand, causing the many jade slips to float before her as she examined them one by one.
She reviewed the roster of cultivators participating in the Communal Feast Convention every year. This concerned arrangements she had made more than a decade ago using the Flood Dragon Demon's flesh.
She had waited over a decade for this day. Today was the time to reap the harvest of one cycle.
After today, she would gain another batch of furnace cauldrons, and Golden Egg Jade Island would gain some new children as well.
The human head of Old Man Fate Crane quietly sipped Egg Yolk Tea. The crane head stretched out its neck, seized the cup before Mother Diviner True Person, and drained it in a single gulp. It did not speak again to provoke her, merely finding things dull as it withdrew onto the shoulder and closed its eyes to rest.
Before long, Mother Diviner True Person had reviewed more than half the jade slips. Yet as she continued reading, her gaze suddenly sharpened, and she raised her head to look at Old Man Fate Crane opposite her.
A barely perceptible trace of disgust flashed through her eyes as she looked at the crane head. Mother Diviner True Person quickly shifted her gaze to Old Man Fate Crane's human head, her expression carrying both confusion and teasing.
"When did Senior Fate Crane take in a new personal disciple named Yang An?
Why did you send him to the Communal Feast Convention without informing this junior in advance? This junior could have ordered someone to take extra care of him."
Before you continue