North Sea Commandery City.
The western part of the city was one of the few places of pleasure throughout North Sea Commandery.
Besides Tianbao Mountain, found in every commandery city, the western part also boasted several top-tier pleasure spots. Guanlan Pavilion was one of them.
The entire Guanlan Pavilion stood on a vast North Sea Lake, shrouded in mist and resembling an immortal realm among the clouds.
Several figures stood casually by the railings atop the pavilion, looking down at the vast, mist-covered waters below.
Lei Zhan slowly climbed the pavilion steps behind a servant. At a glance, he spotted Baili Changfeng, who had his back to him as he admired the scenery, along with several figures gathered around him.
"Brother Lei Zhan, does the view from Guanlan Pavilion suit your taste?" Baili Changfeng turned to look at Lei Zhan, a hint of amusement in his eyes.
"Since Brother Changfeng is treating, I'm naturally satisfied." Lei Zhan smiled faintly. He had already taken in the breathtaking scenery around Guanlan Pavilion on the way over.
"There are two reasons for this banquet. First, to celebrate Brother Lei Zhan's breakthrough to the Myriad Phenomena realm. And second..." Baili Changfeng gestured toward the several cultivators who had turned around beside him. "I wanted to introduce you to a few fellow Daoists."
"Hm?" Lei Zhan followed Baili Changfeng's gaze. Beside him stood a man and two women. Lei Zhan could sense that all three were at the same level of cultivation as he was: the Myriad Phenomena realm.
"This woman..." Lei Zhan's gaze immediately fell on the woman who had just turned around.
One glance was enough to make his heart tremble.
Could there truly be such an unparalleled fairy, with a bearing so far above the world?
The woman in gray was barefoot, and her beauty was breathtaking. She wore a simple gray robe, as plain as sackcloth, yet it could not hide her stunning looks. Instead, it lent her an otherworldly aura.
But Lei Zhan's Dao Heart was exceptionally strong, and three years of tempering in the North Dark Sea had changed him beyond recognition. In just an instant, he came back to his senses.
"Hahaha!" Baili Changfeng burst into hearty laughter.
"Fairy Kucao is beautiful enough to leave countless cultivators utterly lovestruck at the sight of her. Before today, only Daoist Xuanhe and I had lost our composure. Now Brother Lei Zhan has joined our ranks!"
"Brother Changfeng... you really..." Lei Zhan looked at Baili Changfeng's teasing expression and shook his head slightly.
How could anyone know that beneath the seemingly calm face of the North Sea Marquis's Young Master Changfeng lay a man who feared nothing more than a peaceful world—unless they knew him well?
"All right, I'll stop teasing you." Baili Changfeng smiled faintly. "You've just met her, but this is Fairy Kucao, the one dressed in gray. She's a reincarnated immortal."
"Greetings, Fairy Kucao." Lei Zhan nodded. No wonder Fairy Kucao had such an extraordinary bearing. It made sense if she was a reincarnated immortal.
Baili Changfeng continued, "There are many reincarnated immortals, so they're not particularly rare. But Fairy Kucao came from the Heavenly Realm to explore our Great Xia World."
"She came from the Heavenly Realm to explore the Great Xia World?" Lei Zhan was taken aback. Although the Heavenly Emperor, ruler of the Heavenly Realm, could only stand as Xia Emperor's equal in the Great Xia World, could the Heavenly Realm truly be compared to the Great Xia World?
Lei Zhan knew that the Heavenly Realm was the largest fragment left after the ancient Pangu World shattered. It was vast beyond measure.
In the east, the Heavenly Court held sway; in the west, Mount Ling of the Buddhist Sect reigned. Countless Asuras and Celestial Beings lived throughout the Heavenly Realm, naturally forming one power after another.
The Buddhist Sect, the Daoist Sect, and other top forces of the Three Realms also maintained their presence in the Heavenly Realm.
Any one of those forces might have a Celestial God or True Immortal among its ranks.
That was the Heavenly Realm. Its breadth and scope for tempering oneself could only surpass the Great Xia World's. She was a reincarnated immortal, too. If she wanted to test herself, why travel so far from home?
"The Heavenly Realm is vast. I came from nothing more than a remote, barren corner of it," Fairy Kucao said coolly.
Naturally, there were no remote, barren corners in the Heavenly Realm. But she had never cared for the small talk cultivators used to greet one another. It was more convenient to seem unapproachable.
Baili Changfeng shook his head slightly at that. It was only natural for reincarnated immortals to have secrets. And Fairy Kucao always treated everyone with the same indifference; whenever someone mentioned the Heavenly Realm, she gave the same answer.
If his younger sister Fairy Lancao hadn't been willing to come to this banquet, he wouldn't have had enough sway to invite Fairy Kucao as well.
Baili Changfeng then gestured toward the equally beautiful woman beside Fairy Kucao. "Fairy Lancao came with Fairy Kucao. She's Fairy Kucao's younger sister."
Lei Zhan looked at the woman in green beside Fairy Kucao and nodded in greeting. "Greetings, Fairy Lancao."
"Brother Lei Zhan, the last person is the Daoist Hanging River I mentioned earlier." Baili Changfeng gestured toward the tall, burly man in black beside him. The man was handsome, but his pair of slightly upturned, flirtatious eyes gave him an almost demonic air.
"Fairy Kucao's charm is simply too powerful. Daoist Hanging River and I both lost our composure when we first met her."
Fairy Kucao glanced at Baili Changfeng. "Young Master Changfeng, you jest."
"Brother Lei Zhan," Baili Changfeng continued, turning to him, "Daoist Hanging River is very capable. Though he's at the same Myriad Phenomena level as the rest of us, like you, he's comprehended two Dao Paths!"
"Oh? He's comprehended two Dao Paths as well?" Lei Zhan couldn't help but regard the Daoist Hanging River before him more seriously.
There was no Immortal Fate Assembly underway now, where one had to wait hundreds of years, hoping only to comprehend a great many Dao Paths before making a dazzling debut at the assembly, held once every three hundred years.
Unless circumstances were unusual, cultivators generally broke through to become Primordial Spirit Daoists as soon as they comprehended one Dao Path.
"Greetings, Daoist Hanging River." Lei Zhan nodded to him.
"Daoist Lei Zhan." Daoist Hanging River's flirtatious eyes swept over Lei Zhan before he nodded coolly.
"Everyone, this is the Daoist Lei Zhan I wanted to introduce earlier. He's a prodigy who has struck terror into the Demon Race across millions of miles around North Sea Commandery City."
"Brother Changfeng, you flatter me." Lei Zhan shook his head with a wry smile. "I've merely slain a few Myriad Phenomena great demons burdened with sin. How can you say I've struck terror into the Demon Race across millions of miles?"
"Hm?" Fairy Kucao glanced at Lei Zhan. He had slain demons burdened with sin? Could he be another cultivator seeking to gain merit?
Though slaying cultivators steeped in sin couldn't guarantee that one would gain merit every time, it was undoubtedly the best way to do so.
Fairy Lancao followed her sister's gaze and looked over as well.
"To have the Clear Qi of Merit swirling around you already puts you ahead of the vast majority of cultivators," Fairy Kucao said.
"Swirling around him?" Baili Changfeng and Daoist Hanging River both looked over.
Merit had been linked to fortune since ancient times, which showed how important it was. If Lei Zhan possessed merit, then he was indeed ahead of nearly ninety percent of cultivators.
Lei Zhan's gaze sharpened. Those who could see the merit surrounding him were all people with powerful souls who had opened their Heavenly Eyes and manifested their divine sense.
But then he remembered that she was a reincarnated immortal, and his doubts immediately vanished. Reincarnated immortals usually had powerful souls. It was no surprise for one at the Myriad Phenomena level to possess divine sense.
"Good!" Baili Changfeng clapped his hands and smiled, looking around at everyone. "You should know that Brother Lei Zhan was only at the Purple Mansion level before. Yet in three years, he slew hundreds of Myriad Phenomena great demons burdened with sin. His comprehension is monstrous, and he's also comprehended two Dao Paths!"
"Brother Changfeng, you're about to lay bare everything about me in front of all our fellow Daoists!" Lei Zhan shook his head slightly.
Yet his gaze swept over Fairy Kucao, Fairy Lancao, and Daoist Hanging River, and he couldn't help marveling inwardly. The three people Baili Changfeng had invited were all remarkable.
The sisters Fairy Kucao and Fairy Lancao had come from the Heavenly Realm. They seemed unassuming, but anyone who came from the Heavenly Realm to explore and temper themselves in the Great Xia World surely couldn't be ordinary.
As for Daoist Hanging River, he had comprehended two Dao Paths in succession while still at the Myriad Phenomena level. Even most reincarnated immortals could do no more than that after awakening their memories.
Besides, this was only what everyone knew. Just as with Lei Zhan himself, everyone knew he had comprehended two Dao Paths, but he had far more tricks up his sleeve.
"Fine! Fine! Fine! I'll say no more!" Baili Changfeng said.
"Come, let's all take our seats over there."
Five enormous banquet tables stood inside the hall. One was placed at the head, while the remaining four were arranged along either side. Each table was laden with immortal fruits, meat dishes, and jade nectar.
After introducing everyone, Baili Changfeng led them to take their seats at the tables.
Clap! Clap! Clap!
Once everyone was seated, Baili Changfeng clapped his hands lightly.
At once, a group of lovely women came in carrying or holding an assortment of musical instruments. They stood in the middle of the hall and began to play and sing.
Ting—
Dong—
A medley of qin and other instruments rang out.
The music was like the tinkling of a spring, washing over the soul.
A woman in green sat before a qin, playing, while a woman in red accompanied her on a pipa. For a moment, the entire hall seemed to fall still, with only the music remaining.
"Hm? That qin and pipa..." Lei Zhan felt indescribably at ease, as if he were nestled in a warm embrace. Even his soul was utterly soothed.
When the piece ended, the hall remained quiet for a long while.
"Fellow Daoists, what did you think of that piece?" Baili Changfeng asked. "The top pleasure spots in the western part of the city each have their own specialties, and Guanlan Pavilion is best known for its music."
"That piece... was indeed beautiful." Fairy Lancao glanced at her sister Fairy Kucao and set down the immortal fruit in her hand. "Those two women playing the qin and pipa have comprehended the Dao of music deeply. In an instant, they drew us all into the melody..."
"Fairy Lancao is right. Those two have reached at least the Domain Realm of the Dao in the Dao of music. They may even have fully comprehended an entire Dao Path." Daoist Hanging River's slightly upturned, flirtatious eyes turned toward Fairy Kucao, and he promptly echoed her words.
Fairy Kucao seemed not to notice. She simply ate the fruit on the table. If her younger sister hadn't begged again and again to see the banquets held by the young lords of the vassal states, she would never have come. She truly disliked such things.
"The two women you just saw are Guanlan Pavilion's most famous musicians, the Qin and Yin fairies. Even I have to book in advance to hear them play." Baili Changfeng took in everyone's expressions at a glance.
This chapter really took me three or four hours to polish. Good grief! The next chapter will probably be a little late!