The Yang Siblings

Over the next few days, while cultivating, Li Weiyi and Zhao Meng also diligently studied this world's language and writing, hoping to master them completely as soon as possible.

As they drew ever closer to Jiu Li City, the Sui River broadened further, like a placid lake. Passenger tower ships, painted pleasure boats, armored warships... sailed across its surface like a thousand sails passing through.

After nightfall, every vessel hung bone lamps or lanterns painted with ladies. Their light reflected upon the water; above, the heavens glittered with stars, while below, songs and dances filled the river—a scene of flourishing peace and prosperity.

The entire Sui River ran north to south through Lingxiao Shengjing, its main river channel flowing across seven provinces. With its many tributaries and lakes, abundant aquatic resources, and convenient transportation, its influence reached more than a dozen provinces.

Thus, the colossal Sui Sect arose in response. It cleared the baleful demons, departed spirits, river bandits, and other dangers from the Sui River basin, making water transport smoother and more prosperous. At the same time, it controlled the right to speak in all kinds of waterborne trade and transportation, earning vast amounts of Silver Coin.

After several centuries, the Sui Sect had leaped from being a trade-and-transport agency under the Jiu Li Tribe into one of Lingxiao Shengjing's great dominant sects. Its power and prominence even faintly surpassed those of the Jiu Li Tribe.

At that moment, Li Weiyi and Zhao Meng stood by the railing on the bow deck. Looking out, they saw the character "Sui" emblazoned upon the wind flags of many vessels. The passenger tower ship they were on was no exception.

Li Weiyi asked, "What are you thinking about, Senior Brother?"

"The great river flows east, its waves washing away all the heroes of ages past—yet we must look to today," Zhao Meng declared grandly.

Li Weiyi laughed. "Is that a poem?"

"That's roughly what I mean! We men have to rise above the rest. In this world, we have to accomplish something great. How about we build up the Chan Sect until it's even greater than the Sui Sect? Then, when Senior Disciple Sister hears the Chan Sect's name, she might come looking for us herself," Zhao Meng said.

Li Weiyi said, "That makes sense, but first we need to gain a foothold in this world."

Rumble!

Splash!

The broad river surface suddenly churned violently, waves surging.

A baleful demon resembling both a giant python and a green flood dragon sped through the river, sometimes raising its head, sometimes lashing its tail. Dense iron chains bound its body, scriptures floating across them, while their other ends were connected to a brightly lit, luxuriously decorated ship.

Before long, it caught up, sailing abreast of the passenger tower ship Li Weiyi and the others were on, only two or three zhang away.

At close range, they could see that the python-like, flood-dragon-like baleful demon in the water was over twenty meters long and as thick as a water barrel. A broad green fin ran along its back, and it exuded an imposing presence. On the ship opposite, attendants and servants clustered everywhere; even the maidservants wore brightly colored garments embroidered with exquisite care.

"Is that a flood dragon?" There was no fear in Zhao Meng's eyes. Instead, he looked intensely interested.

He was desperately short on Flood Dragon Blood.

"It's a Green Flood Dragon. The Flood Dragon Blood in its body is very thin."

Li Ling walked over along the corridor. Her injuries had mostly healed, and she had changed into new clothes, a jade hairpin in her hair. To the passengers aboard the ship, she seemed like an immortal maiden descending into the mortal world, and they all watched her from afar.

On the luxurious ship three zhang away, a man and a woman stepped onto the deck and waved at her.

"Little Sister Li Ling... it's me, Yang Yun!"

Splash!

Dharma energy surged from the young man's body. With a leap, he stepped through empty air, crossing the distance of three zhang and landing steadily on the ship where Li Weiyi and the others stood.

Yang Yun was only a year older than Li Ling. He wore brocade robes that looked outrageously expensive, yet he was no pampered dandy. The dharma energy he had just released was far stronger than Yan Qingqing's or Fang Tong's.

His eyes brimmed with delight, and he made no effort to hide his joy. Excitedly, he said, "Qingxi and I heard at Yao Pass that you'd been injured, so we drove the Green Flood Dragon day and night to catch up with you. We finally made it. Thank heavens—seeing how well you look now, your injuries must no longer be a serious concern."

Li Weiyi paid no attention to their greetings and reunion. His gaze was drawn instead to the Pure Immortal Body woman aboard the ship opposite.

She was somewhat older and taller than Yang Yun and Li Ling, lacking the immaturity of young boys and girls. Her garments were exquisitely embroidered and inscribed with scriptures; over them she wore a watery-blue ruqun skirt, with a pale green inner robe beneath.

Of course, what attracted Li Weiyi was neither her beauty nor her bearing, but her unfathomably profound cultivation.

He saw it clearly.

With a flick of her finger, wisps of white dharma-energy mist formed a cloud bridge between the two ships. Then, amid the river wind, she crossed it with light, unhurried, graceful steps. Who knew how many people aboard the surrounding vessels were stunned by the sight? Surely, they would all have sweet dreams tonight.

Only when Yang Qingxi reached Li Ling did her peerlessly beautiful face, like an ice mountain that had stood for ten thousand years, melt into warmth. "You're injured, so why are you still out here in the cold wind? How are your family's servants taking care of their mistress?"

Her gaze turned somewhat stern as it fell upon Zhao Meng and Li Weiyi.

Though Zhao Meng was enormous in stature, in this world where the Deformed Race was everywhere, all kinds of Living Beings existed. The Yang siblings showed not the slightest surprise.

Just like that Green Flood Dragon over twenty meters long, which was only fit to pull their ship.

Li Weiyi did not want to explain further, and he and Zhao Meng were about to leave. But Yang Yun was too enthusiastic. Upon hearing that they were Li Ling's servants, he immediately took out Spring Coins and gave one to each of them.

That was equivalent to ten thousand Copper Coin!

With such generosity, the two naturally found it hard to refuse. After accepting them, they repeatedly voiced their thanks.

"What's there to thank me for? They're only two Spring Coins. Not long ago, I broke through the Eighth Spring, Fengfu. The rewards from the sect, the family, and the provincial governor's office added up to fifty thousand Silver Coin. It was a little on the low side, but it was free money—why not take it?" Yang Yun said with a smile.

"That's exactly right."

Li Weiyi and Zhao Meng naturally agreed again and again, quickly pocketing the Spring Coins before hurrying off the deck.

In the corridor, they ran into Zhao Zhizhuo.

"Why are you two so happy?" Zhao Zhizhuo asked curiously.

"Hurry over and pay your respects to your Fourth Miss. I guarantee you'll be happy too."

After saying that, the two burst into laughter and walked away.

But once they had laughed, they soon fell silent, with none of their earlier lofty ambition remaining.

Instead, they felt that they themselves were the funniest people of all.

He was only sixteen or seventeen, yet he had already opened eight springs, his cultivation far above theirs. This world had too many geniuses and too many experts; no wonder others treated them as household servants.

Perhaps other people's household servants were even stronger than them.

What they called superior aptitude might merely be the threshold for cultivating as Martial Cultivators.

Zhao Meng said, "I hope that one day, we too can casually use Spring Coins to reward our servants. Only then will we truly have status and dignity."

On the deck at the bow, Li Ling smiled faintly. "Your Sui Sect truly has well-informed sources. I only made a brief appearance at Yao Pass, yet you already learned my exact whereabouts."

Yang Yun said, "Little Sister Ling being injured is no small matter. Naturally, those below had to report it to us."

Yang Qingxi knew there was meaning behind Li Ling's words and did not wish to continue discussing the matter. She asked, "I heard that during your Coffin Retrieval this time, you encountered an attack by Buddha's Crossing Bandits. Was your brother hurt?"

"If Sister Qingxi wants to become my sister-in-law, you should put more thought into it lately. It seems my brother has someone he likes now." Li Ling blinked, smiling.

They did not gather for long before Yang Qingxi and Yang Yun took their leave and returned to the Green Flood Dragon ship.

Yang Yun had originally been unwilling to leave and wanted to travel with Li Ling, but Yang Qingxi forcibly dragged him away.

The next morning.

Li Weiyi had just gotten up when Zhao Zhizhuo came to visit and told him that they would reach Jiu Li City by noon at the latest.

Standing by the railing and looking into the distance, Li Weiyi saw a mountain range stretching endlessly along the western bank of the Sui River. Peaks rose one after another, shrouded in cloud and mist, like a thousand-mile wall holding up heaven and earth.

When the river channel drew near the mountain range, it looked dark and oppressive, as though it were about to topple down and crush them.

Only when the river channel moved farther from the mountain range could they see the layers upon layers of peaks within it, perilous and unfathomably deep.

Zhao Zhizhuo said, "The Mang Mountain Range forms the western boundary of Lizhou. It is said that every mountain peak within the range is the tomb of an ancient emperor. That is how the Mang Mountain Imperial Tomb Complex got its name."

"Beyond the Mang Mountain Range lies the boundless Netherworld of the Departed, a forbidden zone for life... or at least, a forbidden zone for humans."

Li Weiyi knew something of the Netherworld of the Departed. Legend had it that the netherworld had no borders and was so vast that even Longevity Realm experts could not venture deep enough to reach its end.

"Doesn't that mean Jiu Li City is separated from the Netherworld of the Departed by only the Mang Mountain Range?" Li Weiyi could not understand why Jiu Li City had been built in such a dangerous place.

"It wasn't like this in the past! A thousand years ago, the Jiu Li Tribe ruled over the lands of nine prefectures, while Lingxiao Shengjing spanned as many as Three Hundred Prefectures. Zen Sea Observing Mist, the foremost figure of Lingxiao, was an existence capable of deterring the netherworld. It was that world-destroying calamity that caused ninety percent of Lingxiao's habitable lands to be swallowed by the Netherworld of the Departed, leaving only Twenty-Eight Prefectures today." Zhao Zhizhuo let out a long sigh, unwilling to say more.

Upon returning to his cabin, Li Weiyi questioned the remnant corpse in the stone coffin and Senior Spirit Tablet.

After hearing him out, the two fell into a long silence.

They did not know the reason either. When they had left, Lingxiao Shengjing had still been perfectly fine. Clearly, they had never anticipated the present situation.

Before the passenger ship even reached the dock, Martial Cultivators riding strange beasts or flying birds would occasionally come from the shore and sky to investigate, constantly flying back and forth.

Cangli was already waiting at the dock.

Most of the young talents accompanying him were children of influential clans, Outstanding Persons from academies, and Proud Daughters of Heaven from sects. Each rode in a treasure carriage drawn by strange beasts, all looking to Cangli as their leader.

The Cangli Tribe's greatest genius in a thousand years was certainly no empty title. With a Pure Immortal Body, he had broken through the Nine Springs and entered the Five Seas Realm. Such talent and such cultivation speed, even among those Myriad Gate Families and Myriad Sects, would absolutely qualify him as a "first inheritor" or "second inheritor" representing his family or sect as he traveled the world.

For a prominent young figure like him, naturally countless followers gathered around him in Jiu Li City.

The so-called Myriad Gate Families and Myriad Sects referred to factions that had been passed down for at least a thousand years, possessed at least ten thousand Martial Cultivators of superior aptitude, and also commanded at least ten million people over whom they could directly exert influence. All three requirements had to be met.