Inside the great hall on the Main Peak, the sect master and several core elders saw Lin Fan return safe and sound, perfectly composed. Only then did the hearts that had hung in suspense for days finally settle.
The sect master let out a long breath, his face filled with a relieved smile. "Elder Lin has returned safely. Wonderful, wonderful! We have been worrying these past few days, afraid you might encounter villains amid the dangers of the wilderness."
The elders nodded as well, their gazes settling on Lin Fan as they examined him closely.
Yet none of them could detect any difference in him.
To their senses, he still gave off the same faint, gentle aura of the early Bright Force realm. Such cultivation was neither particularly low nor particularly high.
No one could imagine that the young elder before them had already taken a step no one in the Azure Elixir Sect had managed in a thousand years, becoming the sect's first hidden Astral Force powerhouse.
Lin Fan calmly cupped his hands, his tone gentle. "Sorry to have made you and the elders worry, Sect Master. The journey was peaceful, without any trouble."
After exchanging a few pleasantries and politely declining the sect master's offer to hold a welcoming banquet, Lin Fan bade everyone farewell and walked slowly back to the courtyard on his own private hill.
As he stepped through the courtyard gate, the thin blue glow overhead enveloped the entire courtyard from every direction, enclosing it securely like an enormous eggshell.
The courtyard was lovely, with a gentle breeze and flourishing flowers and trees. The colorful blossoms in its flowerbeds were in full bloom, and a faint medicinal fragrance lingered in the air.
The first to notice his return was Chu Lingxi, who had been quietly