Qingchan Peak

Chen Yan sat on the bed, gazing at the moonlight spilling across the window.

This Reincarnation Record Point had stopped shortly before he encountered Qingchan Peak's Chief, Chu Xiyao, in the pavilion atop the mountain near the Outer Court.

"The Gears of Fate are slowly beginning to turn."

That was the evaluation for this reincarnation.

In other words, through more than twenty previous reincarnations, he had never stepped into his true fate.

But this time, he had finally escaped that mistaken cycle of reincarnation.

So what, exactly, was true fate?

That was a question Chen Yan had no hope of figuring out at this moment, so he turned his attention back to the reward he had obtained from this reincarnation.

The Hidden Immortal Art.

A cultivation method that could Conceal Heavenly Secrets, disguise one's true cultivation, and prevent anyone from seeing through the level of one's cultivation.

Moreover, when Chen Yan began circulating the Hidden Immortal Art, he could clearly feel the true qi flowing through his meridians more smoothly than when he circulated the Empty Mountain Art.

Chen Yan knew perfectly well what smoother true qi circulation meant.

It meant greater efficiency and greater power when he cast techniques.

It also meant that, to a certain extent, it could accelerate his cultivation.

This reincarnation had received a C-grade evaluation.

After more than twenty reincarnations, Chen Yan's reincarnation evaluation had finally made a breakthrough.

"So there's a possibility that changes to the Reincarnation Record Point can affect the evaluation grade?"

Chen Yan muttered to himself.

That was highly possible.

But if the Reincarnation Record Point could change...

As it advanced, he might lose his chance to save Cheng Ziying.

There were still three years until the Outer Court Calamity.

"..."

No. This was not the time to dwell on it.

Chen Yan shifted his focus back to reality.

What should he do next?

Should he go up the mountain to see Chu Xiyao, or stand by with his arms folded?

In truth, Chen Yan felt he had no obligation whatsoever to help Chu Xiyao go to the Detention Center.

But he suspected that what would happen at the Detention Center tonight was very likely connected to the calamity that would later strike the Outer Court.

If, on the day the calamity came, he was unable to do anything...

Then what if he could nip the source of that calamity in the bud today?

Chen Yan's suspicions were not baseless. His evidence was the look in Chu Xiyao's eyes when that soft-voiced man had killed him.

They had been filled with self-reproach and guilt.

It was exactly the same expression Chu Xiyao had worn before the Training Ground several reincarnations ago.

Why had Chu Xiyao felt guilty about the calamity in the Outer Court?

Could there be a possibility that the Outer Court Calamity was connected to Chu Xiyao?

Otherwise, there was no reason for her to feel guilty over the consequences of that disaster.

In the end, Chen Yan arrived at the pavilion on the Outer Court mountain.

Before long, light footsteps sounded behind him.

"Why are you still here so late?"

The White-robed Girl behind him spoke the exact same line as in the previous reincarnation.

"Don't kill me! Don't kill me!"

Chen Yan feigned shock and panic, crouching on the ground with his hands over his head.

"...Kill you?"

Chu Xiyao showed a trace of confusion. Then she merely lifted the token hanging at her waist and waved it toward Chen Yan beneath the moonlight.

"..."

Upon seeing the White-robed Girl's token, Chen Yan looked as though he had finally seized a Lifesaving Straw.

"Senior Sister, the Detention Center—the Detention Center has had an incident!"

Before Chu Xiyao could continue speaking, Chen Yan immediately cut in.

"An incident?"

Chu Xiyao's expression changed slightly at his words.

"I couldn't sleep, so I went to the Law Enforcement Hall to chat with a guard disciple I knew, but there was no one there. Then, in the Detention Center, I saw Shang Gong Hall's Steward Song, he..."

Chen Yan seemed somewhat incoherent.

The moment Chu Xiyao heard the three words "Steward Song," her gaze suddenly sharpened.

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"Take your time. There's no rush."

Chu Xiyao said.

"In short... Steward Song died in the Detention Center. I found his corpse!"

Chen Yan shouted.

"How could that be? Steward Song, could he possibly..."

"..."

Chu Xiyao stood where she was without saying a word.

She was thinking.

If Chen Yan belonged to those traitors, then compared to persuading her to leave the outer court and return to Qingchan Peak for reinforcements, luring her into a trap would surely yield greater gains.

So Chu Xiyao chose, for the moment, to believe Chen Yan's words.

She raised her hand and lightly reached into the air. A talisman paper appeared at her fingertips.

A storage artifact.

Artifacts tied to the laws of space were exceedingly precious in this world.

But as the Chief Disciple of Qingchan Peak, it was hardly surprising that Chu Xiyao could produce such a fine item.

Chu Xiyao softly recited an incantation, forming a Dharma Seal with her hand. The talisman paper caught between her fingertips then began to burn.

A pale red circle emerged on the ground, enclosing both Chu Xiyao and Chen Yan within it.

It was a teleportation talisman.

In the next instant, red light surged into the sky, sealing everything within the circle away from the outside world.

And when the red light faded, Chen Yan suddenly discovered that their surroundings had completely changed.

In particular, the nine-story black tower standing not far away seized Chen Yan's attention.

"That is..."

"Caiyun Tower."

Chu Xiyao answered.

"Fifteen thousand years ago, it was where our sect's Patriarch Caiyun ascended. Later, to commemorate Patriarch Caiyun, the disciples of Qingchan Peak built that tower."

True Person Caiyun was the third cultivator of the Empty Mountain Sect, since its founding, to reach the great perfection of the Upper Three Realms and step into the Ascension Realm.

His influence on the Empty Mountain Sect, especially Qingchan Peak, was of vital importance, enduring even to this day fifteen thousand years later.

"Come. Follow me to see an elder."

Chu Xiyao said.

"An elder?"

"Qingchan Peak's Martial Suppression Elder, Fu Qian."

Qingchan Peak, Cangwu Studio.

This was the residence of Qingchan Peak's current Martial Suppression Elder, Fu Qian.

No plaque hung above the door. Instead, a fragmentary line had been carved into it with Sword Qi: Save oneself, and save all living beings.

Chen Yan followed Chu Xiyao into the courtyard of Cangwu Studio. At its center lay a cold pool, and in the middle of the pool stood a square platform. Seated upon it was an elderly cultivator in a green Daoist robe, his temples streaked with white.

"Elder Fu, this disciple has something to report!"

Chu Xiyao took another two steps forward and bowed with cupped hands toward the Daoist in the center of the cold pool.

Chen Yan hurriedly copied Chu Xiyao's movements and bowed to the Daoist as well.

Fu Qian, meditating at the center of the cold pool, slowly opened his eyes. Several strands of Destiny True Qi drifted within his pupils.

Chen Yan's heart trembled.

Destiny True Qi!

That meant the Martial Suppression Elder's cultivation had to be at least above the Wanhua Realm!

Below the Ascension Realm, there were nine great realms in all.

The Lower Three Realms are Body Tempering, Qi Channeling, and Martial Spring.

The Middle Three Realms are Qi Sea, Divine Passage, and Wanhua.

The Upper Three Realms are Unity, Divine Ability, and Dao Fusion.

All cultivators knew that Destiny True Qi could mend missing flesh and blood; it was also the foundation of a cultivator. It was said that cultivators above the Wanhua Realm could regenerate their heads with Destiny True Qi even after being beheaded.

This was the first time, across Chen Yan's many reincarnations, that he had seen a cultivator above the Wanhua Realm.

One had to know that even the Outer Court elders of the Empty Mountain Sect possessed only late-stage Qi Sea Realm cultivation.

"What happened?"

Fu Qian's voice boomed like a great bell as he slowly spoke.

Then Chu Xiyao turned her head slightly and gave Chen Yan a look.

"Outer Court Disciple Chen Yan greets Elder Fu!"

Chen Yan stepped forward and said.