Above the Nine Heavens, Fairy in the Clouds

A true dragon pulling a carriage in the front.

A phoenix guarding from behind.

Just imagining that scene—tsk, tsk—it felt so familiar, and honestly, quite something to look forward to.

Lin Xiaoyao thought happily, eagerly hoping that a Dragon King would come to cause him trouble.

Unfortunately, that did not happen.

Although this world was infinitely vast and there might be countless big shots and powerhouses in unknown regions, at least within a radius of ten thousand miles, there were no dragons.

Therefore, the wish to have a Dragon King come to trouble him was currently destined to fall through.

But Lin Xiaoyao was not disappointed.

No rush.

One must eat a meal one bite at a time. A true dragon pulling his carriage and a phoenix guarding the rear—this scene would definitely happen in the future, and it would be even more spectacular than he imagined.

For instance, besides the true dragon and phoenix, he could find a few Qilin, Black Tortoises, or other divine beasts.

But that was for the future...

As for now?

Better not think too much; he should just stay low-key in the sect and slowly recover his Saint-level cultivation and magic power.

Anyway, his lifespan was infinite, so why be in such a hurry?

Thinking this to himself, he decided to claim today's reward first.

He silently chanted in his heart, "System, claim."

Before the words had even faded, a porcelain bottle appeared in the palm of his right hand.

He pried open the stopper.

More than ten snow-white pills came into view.

Youth-Preserving Pill, capable of granting eternal youth and keeping a cultivator's appearance unchanged.

However, Lin Xiaoyao naturally had no use for it.

A Saint would never age to begin with.

But while he didn't need it, for all the beauty-loving fairies, it was a priceless treasure, one that would make them flock to it far more than any pill that increased magic power or helped break through bottlenecks.

"Keep it for now!"

Lin Xiaoyao only glanced at it before casually tossing the Youth-Preserving Pill into his system space.

Looking at this item reminded him of someone.

Over the past two years, although he had been lying low in the sect, his fame had inexplicably skyrocketed, especially among mortals, who had even built quite a few temples for him.

But besides his own soaring reputation, there was another person in the Feathering Sect whose fame had also risen; although her cultivation was not yet high, she had already begun to make a name for herself in the world of cultivation.

Su Zhiyan!

That's right, she was the clever young girl who had climbed the mountain and joined the Feathering Sect with him back then.

This girl possessed excellent spiritual roots and the potential to become an immortal; in less than ten years, she had actually succeeded in condensing a Golden Core.

Even when forming her core, because her aptitude was too extraordinary, she had invited the jealousy of the heavens, which sent down an Outer-Realm Heavenly Demon to obstruct her path to immortality.

Originally, this was an unsolvable outcome.

It looked as if a genius was about to perish prematurely.

Unfortunately, it just so happened that Lin Xiaoyao was there.

Unable to bear seeing a genius die young or a beauty meet a tragic end, he took action.

Uh... strictly speaking, it didn't really count as taking action.

Because he didn't do anything; he just stood there, and the arrogant Outer-Realm Heavenly Demon simply knelt down.

Note, this was not a figure of speech.

The Outer-Realm Heavenly Demon, which made cultivators tremble like tigers, did not hesitate for a second when facing Lin Xiaoyao; it knelt down directly, shivering.

Without him even needing to lift a finger, it very sensibly vanished into thin air on its own.

A great disaster was thus extinguished into nothingness.

Later, Lin Xiaoyao discovered that this girl was truly a seed of immortality, as she had condensed the legendary Purple Core.

However, the Purple Core was flawed.

The Way of Heaven takes from the surplus to replenish the deficit; it would not allow such a perfect thing to exist.

But even if Heaven does not permit it, I shall grant it.

Thus, Lin Xiaoyao acted, using the might and words of a Saint to help her complete the Purple Core and assist the girl in obtaining the perfect spiritual roots that were only vaguely mentioned in ancient texts.

Although the girl did not know his true identity, she was deeply grateful to him.

She was also very well-behaved and kept her mouth shut, not even revealing a single word about this matter to her master or the sect's grandmaster.

Su Zhiyan was a very clever girl.

She also sensed the incredible changes that had occurred within her after that Golden Core formation.

In the past, although her cultivation speed was ridiculously fast and sensing the essence of heaven and earth was as easy as eating or drinking, it was merely enviable.

But she discovered that since forming her Golden Core, this effect had increased by more than tenfold.

Previously, although cultivation was easy, she still needed to sit cross-legged in meditation to guide the essence of heaven and earth into her Dantian and Purple Palace.

Only then could she circulate it through her eight extraordinary meridians to cleanse her marrow and refine her bones.

But now, it was different.

She discovered that she didn't even need to do anything.

Even while eating, drinking, flying, or resting, she didn't need to deliberately circulate her cultivation technique; the dense spiritual energy permeating the world would automatically help her improve her cultivation and magic power with every breath she took.

This, of course, was not a benefit brought about by the Golden Core formation.

It was a gift from an immortal.

The young girl was naturally filled with immense gratitude in her heart.

She still remembered that within the illusion, although she hadn't seen the immortal's face clearly, she felt that... the other party was extremely young.

It seemed he was only a few years older than her!

As she pondered this in secret, Su Zhiyan was startled by her own thought.

That was a true immortal, after all; how could he be the same age as her?

Although she felt such a thought was utterly absurd.

Yet, the young girl simply had that feeling.

Even though the fellow disciples and even the uncles and aunts of the sect all said that it was one of the sect's ancestors.

But Su Zhiyan felt that it wasn't!

They must have been mistaken.

That immortal was definitely not an ancestor of their sect.

Of course, all of this was just the girl's speculation.

Or rather, a type of intuition.

But regarding the true identity of that mysterious immortal, she remained completely ignorant.

It was just that the girl's heart was stirred, and she would often think of his kindness when she was alone.

Su Zhiyan was very smart and knew that the changes happening to her must never be told to outsiders, not even her master.

An innocent man may be guilty of a crime for possessing a treasure; being able to improve her cultivation just by breathing without needing to practice was too shocking.

Once the news leaked, it would surely bring great disaster to herself and even the sect.

Over the past two years, she had already been very low-key.

But gold always shines; no matter how low-key she was, it was hard to avoid standing out. After all, she wasn't Lin Xiaoyao, who could keep hiding in the sect and signing in.

As a Golden Core cultivator, going out for training was inevitable.

Even if she tried to hide her talents, her brilliance still far surpassed her peers.

Moreover, the girl was now twenty years old, in the prime of her youth, with an extremely beautiful face and cultivation far exceeding her peers, so despite her low profile, her reputation continued to rise.

It was said that she possessed beauty that could shame the moon and flowers, and cause fish to sink and geese to fall.

When she wielded her flying sword to slay enemies, her body was often shrouded in a layer of faint, misty clouds.

It made people feel as if they were looking at flowers through a fog.

Consequently, someone gave her a beautiful title: she was called the Fairy in the Clouds!

Now, within a radius of ten thousand miles, Su Zhiyan already had quite a reputation.

However, a tree that stands above the forest will be destroyed by the wind. What Su Zhiyan did not know was that as her fame gradually spread, a danger, a great disaster, was already silently closing in on her and the Feathering Sect.