Meeting the Three Xiao

"Four Golden Immortals!"

After sensing the other party's vast, ocean-like aura, Li Qingxu tensed all over, and the unease in his heart grew stronger.

He was only at the mid-stage Earth Immortal realm. Facing four Golden Immortals would mean certain death.

As Li Qingxu warily sized up the four of them, their gazes all fell on him as well.

"I am Zhao Gongming. Greetings, fellow Daoist."

The black-robed man at the head cupped his hands toward Li Qingxu, his voice deep and resonant.

"Zhao Gongming?"

Li Qingxu's heart stirred, and a flood of information from his past-life memories came surging back.

In his memories of his previous life, Zhao Gongming was the Interception Sect's Eldest Senior Brother among its outer disciples. He had formed from the first breeze between Heaven and Earth, and was powerful, forthright, and loyal. He and the Three Xiao were siblings.

During the Investiture of the Gods Tribulation, however, Zhao Gongming was killed by Lu Ya's Nail-Head Seven Arrows Book. His True Spirit was placed on the Investiture of the Gods, and after the tribulation, he was appointed the True Lord of the Dragon and Tiger Xuantan.

To avenge their elder brother, the Three Xiao laid down the Nine-Bend Yellow River Formation, stripping the Kunlun Twelve Golden Immortals of their Three Flowers Above the Crown and Five Qi in the Chest. In the end, the overprotective Primordial Heavenly Venerate personally sent them to the Investiture of the Gods.

The three women behind him must be Yunxiao, Qiongxiao, and Bixiao, who formed from innate clouds and rosy mists.

Li Qingxu guessed to himself.

Seeing Li Qingxu standing there in a daze without answering for a long while, the Three Xiao assumed he had been frightened by the aura Zhao Gongming was giving off.

"Hey, Brother, don't be so stern. You look scary."

Bixiao, the youngest, chided him, then smiled brightly at Li Qingxu.

"My name is Bixiao. This is my brother, Zhao Gongming, and my two elder sisters, Yunxiao and Qiongxiao."

"Don't be nervous. We sensed a battle nearby and came to see what was going on. We mean you no harm."

Li Qingxu came back to his senses and cupped his hands toward them.

"I am Li Qingxu. Greetings, fellow Daoists."

Given that he was only a mid-stage Earth Immortal facing three Golden Immortals, he ought to have addressed them as seniors.

But since Zhao Gongming had taken the initiative to call him a fellow Daoist, he decided to treat them as equals.

"Were you fighting someone here just now, fellow Daoist?"

Zhao Gongming asked curiously, looking down at the shattered mountains and the swamp that had turned to lava.

"Yes."

Li Qingxu nodded, making no attempt to hide what had happened.

"When I passed through here, two Evil Flood Dragons at the Heaven Immortal realm tried to ambush me. I killed them."

Zhao Gongming and the Three Xiao looked somewhat surprised.

After all, Li Qingxu was only at the mid-stage Earth Immortal realm. To kill two Heaven Immortal Evil Flood Dragons without a scratch, despite being ambushed and outnumbered, meant his strength far exceeded that of an ordinary cultivator.

"You're a member of the Human Race. Why aren't you staying in your tribe? What brought you so far from home?" Yunxiao asked.

"I'm going to Kunlun Mountain to seek a Sage as my master," Li Qingxu replied honestly.

"Seek a Sage as your master?"

Zhao Gongming and the Three Xiao exchanged glances, surprise in their eyes.

In their view, Li Qingxu was merely a Human Race cultivator at the Earth Immortal realm, yet he dared to risk the dangers of the Primordial World and travel countless miles to Kunlun Mountain to seek a master. His resolve was truly remarkable.

After all, even they, Golden Immortals, had to travel in a group of four just to ensure their safety.

"Brother, since we've met, it must be fate. We're also going to Kunlun Mountain to seek a master. Why don't we take him along?" Bixiao secretly transmitted to Zhao Gongming.

"Very well."

Zhao Gongming agreed without hesitation.

After all, if Li Qingxu really managed to become a Sage's disciple, they would be fellow disciples. They might as well build a good relationship with him in advance.

"Fellow Daoist Qingxu, the four of us siblings are also on our way to Kunlun Mountain to seek a master."

"If you don't mind, why don't we travel together?"

Zhao Gongming invited him.

Li Qingxu knew they were offering to help him, so he cupped his hands and thanked them at once.

"Gladly. Thank you, fellow Daoists."

Seeing how formal Li Qingxu was, Bixiao couldn't help covering her mouth and laughing.

"Haha, don't mention it."

Now that they had settled the matter, they didn't linger.

"Let's go," Zhao Gongming said, and auspicious clouds formed beneath his feet.

Yunxiao, Qiongxiao, and Bixiao each displayed their own abilities, transforming into streaks of white, green, and blue light.

Though Li Qingxu gave it everything he had, the vast difference in cultivation meant he still couldn't keep up with Zhao Gongming and the others. He could only watch helplessly as the four streaks of light rapidly shrank on the horizon, dwindled to tiny specks, and then disappeared.

"This..."

Just as he shook his head with a wry smile, the green light on the horizon turned back. In the blink of an eye, it was right in front of him.

The green light faded, revealing Bixiao's graceful figure.

A sly smile played on her lips as she looked Li Qingxu over. "You're traveling way too slowly. At this rate, you won't make it in time for the Sage to open his mountain gate."

After saying that, Bixiao didn't give him time to react. She grabbed his wrist. "Don't just stand there. I'll give you a lift."

Before her words had even faded, Li Qingxu felt a gentle yet irresistible power envelop him. The scenery before his eyes suddenly stretched and blurred, turning into flowing bands of light as they sped forward.

Feeling the warmth in his palm and catching a faint, delicate fragrance, Li Qingxu—single in both of his lives—couldn't help feeling his blood stir and his mind waver.

As a Golden Immortal formed from clouds and rosy mists, Bixiao flew more than ten thousand times faster than Li Qingxu could on his own.

But the Primordial World was simply too vast. Even with Bixiao carrying him along, it took them several years to reach the outskirts of Kunlun Mountain.

Kunlun Mountain towered countless miles into the sky, like the backbone of Heaven and Earth, its summit beyond sight.

Standing at the foot of Kunlun Mountain, Li Qingxu felt an indescribably immense force bearing down on him, and his heart trembled.

By comparison, everything else seemed insignificant. Even mountain ranges millions of feet tall looked like little mounds of dirt.

"As expected of the second-largest mountain in the entire Primordial World, surpassed only by Buzhou Mountain. It's astonishing."

Li Qingxu marveled inwardly.

Zhao Gongming and the Three Xiao were much the same. They stood stunned at the foot of Kunlun Mountain for a full minute before slowly coming back to their senses.

When they finally reached the foot of Kunlun Mountain, a vast sea of people came into view.

The Primordial Heavenly Venerate and Tongtian Cult Master were both taking disciples at the same time—a momentous event without precedent in the Primordial World. Living beings from every corner of the world had flocked there.

By now, hundreds of millions of living beings from the Primordial World had gathered at the foot of Kunlun Mountain, and more were still streaming toward it.