Although he had only revealed Low-Grade Saint Talent, in this day and age, joining Qiankun Grotto-Heaven should have been effortless.
Once he obtained abundant resources and cultivated wholeheartedly for a hundred years,
when his strength had grown, he could go search for Xuanhuang Emperor's Tomb.
His memories were incomplete, his foundation incomplete; everything about him was fragmented. He needed the Emperor's Heart from the Emperor's corpse to make up for those flaws!
Though he had ascended in his previous life, he had deliberately left behind his Emperor's Heart for this day, burying it somewhere.
But his memories were incomplete, and he could not recall where. He could only wait until he was powerful enough to dig through every corner of the Eastern Region, seeking only to find Xuanhuang Emperor's Tomb!
At this moment, Qiankun Grotto-Heaven's vast mountain gate opened, and an immortal crane flew over, descending above the crowd.
An old man stood atop the crane, his long beard billowing in the wind. As he looked toward a spot below, a trace of regret flashed through his eyes.
Huang Xuan looked up. The other man was looking at him.
Everyone noticed it and secretly glanced at Huang Xuan, their eyes revealing envy.
"Worthy of Low-Grade Saint Talent—an elder of Qiankun Grotto-Heaven came out personally to meet him!"
"Sure enough, as long as your talent is strong enough, you are a prized delicacy wherever you go."
"Even after leaving Yaoguang Holy Land, he can still easily catch the eye of another of the Nine Great Immortal Sects!"
Crane Elder looked at Huang Xuan, shook his head, and sighed. "You should leave. Qiankun Grotto-Heaven cannot accommodate you."
Huang Xuan blinked, somewhat stunned. "Senior, why?"
Crane Elder said, "You should know very well in your heart. There is no need to ask such a question, is there?"
Hearing this, Huang Xuan shook his head helplessly, turned, and left.
He passed through the crowd and vanished from the plaza.
"Holy shit! What is going on? Qiankun Grotto-Heaven will not accept someone with Huang Xuan's talent?"
"You pig brain, there is obviously something wrong here. With Low-Grade Saint Talent, how could Qiankun Grotto-Heaven possibly not want him?"
"That's right. If my guess is correct, it may be because of Yaoguang Holy Land!"
"You mean... Yaoguang Holy Land blacklisted Huang Xuan?!"
"Most likely!"
"Indeed, Yaoguang Holy Land seems to hate disciples who leave them. Whenever this happens, those who leave can almost never join another major sect."
"What a pity. Although he can still join some small sects, that is far too unfair to Huang Xuan."
"Even Huang Xuan would face severe limits on his future achievements if he joined a small sect and lacked resources."
The crowd's discussion deepened the regret on Crane Elder's face.
That was Low-Grade Saint Talent, and they were just letting it slip away!
"Damn Yaoguang Holy Land."
Crane Elder had no choice either. Qiankun Grotto-Heaven and Yaoguang Holy Land were located in the same province, and he knew only too well how terrifying the latter was.
They could not afford to provoke them. Once the other side had spoken, Qiankun Grotto-Heaven had to comply!
"Yaoguang Holy Land is truly domineering!"
Hua Yunfei sneered.
Huang Xuan's talent was outstanding. Even in an Ultimate Sacred Ground, he would have been among the best.
Though he had not been selected as a Holy Son, with proper nurturing, he would surely become a top-tier expert in the future.
Yet he had suddenly and inexplicably chosen to withdraw from the sacred ground.
That was something a sacred ground could not accept!
Yaoguang Holy Land would not kill Huang Xuan over it, but neither would they make things easy for him.
They had blacklisted his name among the Nine Great Immortal Sects of the Eastern Region, forbidding several top-tier powers from accepting him as a disciple!
Qiankun Grotto-Heaven might not dare, but he did!
Hua Yunfei snorted. He already had a plan.
As long as he did it without a ghost knowing or a god perceiving, erasing every trace, even Yaoguang Holy Land would not be able to trace it back to him.
Of course, it was not that he feared Yaoguang Holy Land. He simply did not want to bring trouble to Backer Sect.
With that thought, Hua Yunfei controlled the flying boat to approach the departing Huang Xuan.
As he acted, he used great power to erase every trace. The entire flying boat merged into the void and sped away through it.
Qiankun Grotto-Heaven Was Quite the Acting Troupe
"None of these sects dares offend Yaoguang Holy Land."
"Ah, it seems I still have to rely on myself..."
Huang Xuan left Qiankun Grotto-Heaven in melancholy. He shot into the sky, pierced the clouds, and headed into the distance.
"If I had known Yaoguang Holy Land was so overbearing, I should have wiped them out in my previous life!"
Huang Xuan thought viciously.
A Great Emperor was invincible in the world. With one hand, he could destroy any power; even an Ultimate Sacred Ground could be overturned with a flip of his palm!
But now, no matter how much he said, it was useless.
He absolutely could not return to Yaoguang Holy Land.
Nor could he go to any ultimate power.
Living beneath Emperor Armaments for too long made the risk of exposure far too great!
And none of the Nine Great Immortal Sects in the Eastern Region would likely take him in either...
It seemed he could only join one of those smaller sects first, then find a way to obtain more cultivation resources later.
"I remember the nearest sect should be Yellow Wind Valley. I'll go there."
Having set his target, Huang Xuan accelerated, intending to head to the nearest city and take a spatial domain gate.
The Eastern Region was boundless. If ordinary cultivators flew, they would not reach its end even after several hundred years.
For long-distance travel, aside from top experts crossing the void, the fastest and most common method was to take spatial domain gates!
As long as he teleported to a spatial domain gate nearest to Yellow Wind Valley, he could save a great deal of time.
"Young friend, please wait."
A gray-robed old man appeared in Huang Xuan's path, standing there with a smile.
"You are?"
Huang Xuan watched him warily. They were high in the sky, with no one around. If the man had ill intentions, he would be in great danger.
When he clearly saw the Eight Trigrams insignia on the gray-robed old man's chest, realization dawned on him. "You are from Qiankun Grotto-Heaven!"
"Indeed."
The gray-robed old man chuckled, sizing Huang Xuan up with satisfaction. "Would you be willing to join Qiankun Grotto-Heaven?"
Huang Xuan was somewhat surprised. "Didn't you reject me? What kind of act are you putting on now?"
Then he reacted and added, "You were merely putting on a show for Yaoguang Holy Land?!"
"Young friend truly is exceptionally clever."
The gray-robed old man smiled and nodded, becoming even more satisfied with Huang Xuan. Not only was his talent outstanding, his mind was sharp as well.
Such talent was exceedingly rare in this age.
That was why Qiankun Grotto-Heaven was willing to take such a great risk to accept Huang Xuan!
"Well? Consider it?" the gray-robed old man asked.
He was confident Huang Xuan would not refuse him!
Sure enough, beneath his expectant gaze, Huang Xuan nodded. Just as he was about to speak, a figure in white suddenly descended from the high sky!
Hua Yunfei was truly impressed. Qiankun Grotto-Heaven was actually an acting troupe.
Huang Xuan had originally had nowhere to go, so he could have easily recruited him into Backer Sect.
Who would have thought that Cheng Yaojin would suddenly charge out halfway through!
"Who are you, sir?"
The gray-robed old man stared warily at Hua Yunfei. This man had descended from the high sky yet evaded his divine sense; he had only noticed him once his figure entered his field of vision!
Hua Yunfei did not waste words. Pointing at Huang Xuan, he said, "Him. I want him. Go back!"
"Uh..."
Before you continue