Heavenly Tribulation.
It was the Awakening of Insects, when thunder began to stir. Dense black clouds pressed down on the mountaintop, dimming the daylight as wind and thunder raged. Cultivators traveled among them, riding the wind and gathering lightning like skylarks.
The Great Void opened, and a Daoist in plain robes stepped out. His bearing was serene and refined, and the three wind-thunder mystic marks between his brows shone brightly. Wherever he stood, neither wind nor thunder descended.
The cultivators all around paid him no heed, as though they could not see him at all. Only the sudden stillness of wind and thunder in one patch of sky drew a few puzzled looks.
Zhou You stopped outside the great formation. After surveying the towers, palaces, mysterious terraces, and wondrous scenery throughout the mountain, he nodded slightly. His expression remained calm, as though nothing could disturb him.
The Altar Thunder Sword Immortal.
His thoughts stirred as he considered the sensitivity of that identity. Of the altar thunder Purple Mansion cultivators openly known in the Li Kingdom, this was probably the only one. Those hiding from the world within grotto-heavens did not enter into his reckoning.
His gaze swept over the many disciples gathering lightning among the clouds. Most had little worry on their faces and moved with easy grace. Their comings and goings lent the place something of his own sect's atmosphere.
Silver lightning flashed, and the Great Void split open. Xu Xuan showed no surprise at the newcomer; his dragon body had already met this True Person Zhou You.
"Greetings, fellow Daoist."
Zhou You spoke first, discreetly sensing the other man. He found only a concentrated divine ability and a cold, austere bearing, without the overbearing presence he had imagined.
"Are you True Person Zhou You of the Upper Firmament