Su Youwei

"At the very least, above the Three-Lotus Realm."

"That is why I came to find you."

Ancient Venerable Chi Ji looked directly into Luo Ling's eyes without the slightest retreat.

"Palace Master Luo Ling, the heavens face not only the threat of the Sacred Clan, but also a hand hidden in the shadows, whose strength cannot be measured."

"If the Divine Stone's disappearance has nothing to do with the Sacred Clan, then we have no idea whether the master behind that hand is friend or foe."

"If the Sacred Clan was responsible for the Divine Stone's disappearance, then they possess the power left behind by the Ancestral Dragon."

Her voice grew increasingly grave.

"Regardless of which possibility it is, the Return to Ruins Divine Temple needs every force that can be united."

The hall fell silent once more.

A mountain breeze blew in through the window, stirring the loose strands at Luo Ling's temples.

She still held her teacup without moving, as if she had become a statue carved from white jade.

Ancient Venerable Chi Ji did not urge her.

She merely sat quietly and waited.

After a long while.

Luo Ling set down her teacup.

The porcelain touched the sandalwood with an exceedingly soft, crisp sound.

"Fellow Daoist Chi Ji."

Luo Ling finally spoke. Her voice remained cool and detached, but some of its earlier distance had faded.

"Do you know the rules of the Luo God Palace?"

Ancient Venerable Chi Ji frowned slightly.

"I have heard a little. You accept only female disciples and no male disciples."

"That is merely the rule on the surface."

Luo Ling rose to her feet and walked to the hall window.

Beyond it lay an unbroken range of mountains, shrouded beneath a glazed light curtain.

Farther away, the sea of clouds surged