Bestowing Treasures

Looking at the deeply emotional Tianyang Ancestor, Ju Hua found himself at a loss for words.

In truth, the lifespan of a Celestial Immortal is virtually endless. A Celestial Immortal might enter seclusion for hundreds of thousands or even millions of years—a span of time long enough for a dozen generations of ordinary Loose Immortals to pass away.

Under such circumstances, it was hardly strange that a Celestial Immortal ancestor of the clan would be unaware of which Loose Immortals currently resided within the clan.

The only reason Ju Hua had caught the attention of Shangyang Ancestor before his tribulation was that his talent was truly exceptional, offering a glimmer of hope that he might become a Celestial Immortal. Otherwise, given Shangyang Ancestor's status, he would never have paid him any mind.

The Ju Hua of the past was indeed a genius, but the history of the Zhuanshui Clan was filled with such talents. Yet, how many of those geniuses had successfully crossed their tribulations to become Celestial Immortals?

Before his tribulation, it was already a remarkable feat for Ju Hua to have the attention of Shangyang Ancestor alone; attracting the notice of other Celestial Immortals was simply impossible.

Tianyang Ancestor had never heard of Ju Hua before, and since Ju Hua had been a Loose Immortal for less than four years, it would have been strange if the ancestor had known him!

Ju Hua guessed that Tianyang Ancestor's current display of emotion was entirely due to a misunderstanding; he likely assumed Ju Hua was the type of Loose Immortal who had already lived for at least a hundred thousand years.

This situation was truly awkward, and Ju Hua did not know whether he should clarify things for Tianyang Ancestor.

If he explained, it would smack of showing off, and Ju Hua's heart did not possess a penchant for vanity.

If he did not explain, Tianyang Ancestor would eventually find out, and he would have to waste his breath explaining it then. After all, he had only been a Loose Immortal for four years and had only been cultivating for a little over three hundred years; normally, it would be extremely difficult to comprehend the fifth stance of the Great Sorrow Sword Art!

Just like the Three-Foot Sword that once appeared in the Desolate Era, the complete set consisted of nine stances, but since it was left behind by a Loose Immortal of one million years, its ninth stance was only comparable to the sixth stance of the Great Sorrow Sword Art.

The Great Sorrow Sword Art also had nine stances, and the Celestial Immortal who created it claimed that whoever could master all nine would be only a step away from fully comprehending the entire Sword Dao!

This meant that the Great Sorrow Sword Art was far more difficult to cultivate than the Three-Foot Sword, which showed just how incredible it was that Ju Hua had mastered the fifth stance in such a short time!

Under these circumstances, once Tianyang Ancestor learned the truth later, he would certainly come to question Ju Hua.

After a moment of hesitation, Ju Hua decided not to explain for the time being; it was truly difficult for him to bring up such a topic himself.

"Your name is Ju Hua?" Tianyang Ancestor asked.

"Yes!"

"Your strength is formidable. With you leading the Zhuanshui Clan's army, I can rest easy!" Tianyang Ancestor slowly took a small Five-Colored Treasure Lotus from his storage treasure and continued, "You are a Sword Immortal, peerless in slaughter, but your defensive measures are inevitably lacking. This is a protective treasure I used in my early years, called the Five-Colored Treasure Lotus. I gift it to you today!"

"Many thanks, Ancestor!"

Ju Hua did not stand on ceremony and accepted the Five-Colored Treasure Lotus directly.

"Mm. If a situation like today's happens again, notify me at any time!" Tianyang Ancestor nodded lightly, then transformed into a streak of golden light once more, vanishing from the spot in an instant.

Watching the golden light fly into the far distance in a blink, Ju Hua felt a slight stir of emotion. The strength of this Tianyang Ancestor was likely extraordinary, far beyond that of an ordinary Celestial Immortal.

An average Celestial Immortal would not have the boldness to gift an Immortal-ranked treasure to a junior upon their first meeting!

One must know that the vast majority of treasures used by Celestial Immortals are merely Immortal-ranked; those who possess Pure Yang treasures are truly as rare as phoenix feathers and qilin horns.

Being able to casually give away an Immortal-ranked treasure proved that Tianyang Ancestor certainly possessed many of them, and the quantity of treasures, to a certain extent, reflected the strength of a Celestial Immortal.

After all, without sufficient strength, how could one have the ability to collect enough treasures?

"He is a Celestial Immortal of the Zhuanshui Clan, after all!" Ju Hua shook his head. He did not continue to dwell on it; the stronger Tianyang Ancestor was, the better!

The stronger Tianyang Ancestor was, the safer he would be on this expedition.

After seeing Tianyang Ancestor off, Ju Hua flew back to the main army at high speed.

"Send two people to bring Fuyun and Zhuanshui Pingqiu back!" Ju Hua ordered calmly, then waved his hand to release the massive Shuixuan Warship.

The Shuixuan Warship was an Immortal-ranked treasure, after all. Although it had suffered significant damage after being bombarded by that Void-Refining God-Demon, it was still functional, and there was every hope of restoring it to its original state with some re-refining later.

"Everyone else, board the ship. Target: Autumn Mountain Great Marsh!" Ju Hua commanded.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!

No one spoke; only figures clad in dark armor boarded the Shuixuan Warship one after another.

Hum!

The massive Shuixuan Warship began to move forward once more, its terrifying aura spilling out into the sky again.

Because they were not far from the Autumn Mountain Great Marsh, Ju Hua did not return to his room to enter seclusion. He simply stood on the deck of the Shuixuan Warship, silently gazing at the scenery flashing by in the distance.

After watching for a while, Ju Hua suddenly spoke: "Since Fairy Qing is here, why hide?"

"I wouldn't dare hide in front of Fellow Daoist Ju Hua!" A soft laugh rang out, and the young-looking Qing Muling appeared behind Ju Hua.

"What brings Fairy Qing here?" Ju Hua asked without turning his head.

"Naturally, to congratulate Fellow Daoist Ju Hua on your great increase in strength!" As Qing Muling spoke, a cyan jade appeared in her hand.

"Fellow Daoist Ju Hua, this is a peculiar treasure I obtained by chance. Although its grade is not high, it has the effect of nourishing the soul, which is of great benefit to the cultivation of us Loose Immortals!" Qing Muling smiled.

"This jade is not a particularly precious item, so please, Fellow Daoist Ju Hua, do me the honor of accepting it!"

"Since it is Fairy Qing's kind intention, I shall not refuse!" Ju Hua turned around and took the cyan jade. However, the moment his fingers touched the jade, his expression shifted slightly.

Fortunately, Ju Hua's inner resolve was strong enough that he quickly suppressed this trace of abnormality.

"Fellow Daoist Ju Hua, is something wrong?" Ju Hua's fleeting change in expression had not escaped Qing Muling, but she did not overthink it; she merely asked with a hint of trepidation.

"It is nothing. I just felt that the material of this jade is quite peculiar. I wonder what kind of heavenly treasure was used to refine it?" Ju Hua asked calmly.

"I am not sure about that. I obtained this jade by chance after killing a great sinner of a cultivator in the past!" Qing Muling replied.

"I see!" Ju Hua nodded thoughtfully.