The Cloud Summit Tournament Begins!

The Yun Clan's "Cloud Summit Tournament" would be held on Yunqu Peak.

The Yun Clan's ancestors had used a mighty divine ability to sever a piece of the "Floating Mystic Sky Continent" from above the nine heavens. Through generations of ritual refinement, it had finally attained its present grandeur.

The peak hovered ten thousand zhang above the clan grounds, its entire mass a deep blue-green, harder than a stellar core. Silvery-white, cloudlike patterns flowed across it-the manifestation of the spiritual veins of heaven and earth, condensed to their utmost limit.

Sun-reflecting glazed tiles paved the ground, while mystic radiance and purple qi wreathed the clouds. It was truly a scene fit for immortals.

Today, dawn broke, and purple qi came from the east.

The Cloud Thoroughfare Mountains already teemed with figures, the atmosphere seething with excitement.

Every household and lineage of the Yun Clan, including branches near and far, had taken their strictly allotted seats across the four peaks. The air brimmed with the taut excitement before dragons and tigers clashed.

Yet nothing drew more attention than the front row of the eastern viewing platform, where Fifth Elder Yun Jun's lineage sat.

Unlike the elder everyone had imagined, the Fifth Elder wore a rather festive dark-red brocade robe patterned with blessings today. His face glowed as he sat smiling in his seat. More than twenty steward disciples clustered around him, each carrying a spirit-jade flower basket brimming with immortal flower petals.

Surrounded like the moon amid a host of stars was a girl who looked no more than fifteen or sixteen, dressed in a flowing gown of pale-yellow gauze.

The girl had a delicate, lovely face, skin fairer than snow, and large, lively, clear eyes. Every glance carried a natural hint of innocent bewilderment. She was Yun Ruyi, the pride of the Fifth Elder's lineage and bearer of the "innate fortune physique."

At that moment, her fine brows were slightly knitted as she held a yellow ribbon and a pink one, asking in distress, "Grandpa, which color do you like? I can't choose." Yun Ruyi's voice was soft and sweet, full of innocent charm.

"Oh, Grandpa likes whichever one my little Ruyi wears!" The Fifth Elder immediately sprang from his chair and leaned toward his granddaughter. The old face that had been so cold and decisive when banishing Yun Hao's family was now wreathed in loving smiles.

"It doesn't match? How could it not match! Ruyi looks lovely in anything. This pink suits you so well-you look just like a little fairy!" He changed tack without the slightest principle. "If you don't like it, we'll change it right away. Quick! Bring out all the spare ribbons!"

A disciple behind him immediately presented an enormous tray.

"Look, Ruyi: red, orange, yellow, green, cyan, blue, violet. Ones that shimmer with flowing colors, ones that calm the heart and focus the mind, ones that speed up the recovery of immortal power... Grandpa prepared them all for you. Is there one you like?" The Fifth Elder rubbed his hands, gazing eagerly at his granddaughter, the very picture of a doting grandfather worthy of the Twenty-Four Exemplars of Filial Piety.

Yun Ruyi burst into a giggle at her grandfather's grand display, her smile blooming like a spring flower. In the end, she chose a bright-yellow ribbon that echoed her skirt, its edges adorned with tiny golden stars.

"This one. Thank you, Grandpa!"

"Good, good, good! Bright yellow is wonderful! Rich and elegant! Come, come, Grandpa will tie it for you. I promise it'll be pretty and secure!" The Fifth Elder grinned so broadly his eyes vanished. He carefully took the ribbon, his movements so gentle and precise that he might have been handling the most precious, fragile treasure in the world.

The disciples of the other branches nearby watched, dumbfounded. Some of the younger ones could not help whispering among themselves, both envious and amused.

The Fifth Elder's own lineage, however, had long since grown accustomed to it. The moment he finished tying the ribbon, twenty disciples carrying flower baskets immediately began scattering petals evenly through the air.

In an instant, a shower of flowers fluttered across the sky, their spiritual fragrance rich and heady, framing Yun Ruyi like a goddess amid a sea of blossoms.

This hardly looked like a solemn tournament of immortals. It was more like a noble young lady's outing in the mortal world.

At the elders' seats on the highest point to the north, several core elders had already taken their places.

The Seventh Elder, recently returned from the Northern Border and still wreathed in a bloody aura, stared wide-eyed at the petals swirling in the distance and elbowed the cold-faced Sixth Elder beside him.

"Hey, Sixth, take a look at Fifth!" The Seventh Elder's voice was booming, carrying the bluntness honed on battlefields. "What's happened to him over the years? Has something possessed him? I remember when you two were hacking away at each other in that secret realm. You fought until heaven and earth went dark-even punched right through the realm's core. He wasn't anything like this back then..."

He pointed at the Fifth Elder, who was carefully tying his granddaughter's ribbon. "This-I hardly dare believe it's him!"

The Sixth Elder's expression was icy. Without even glancing over, he gave a cold snort. "Crooked tricks and boundless indulgence. A disgrace to an elder's dignity! I disdain his company!" His words seemed laden with personal grievances. Clearly, he had not entirely let go of that episode of "hacking away at each other."

Not far away, First Elder Yun Che, seated upright to the left of the principal seat, had also taken in the scene. He turned his head slightly and spoke quietly to Second Elder Yun Yuan, who was visibly distracted beside him. "Fifth has cultivated his heart and tempered his nature these past years. He has indeed changed a great deal."

The Second Elder was staring toward the entrance to the square, an unshakable worry locked between his brows. He paid no attention whatsoever. All he could think about was Yun Qing, who remained imprisoned in the Immortal-Sealing Tower.

The tournament is about to begin, yet Yun Qing still hasn't appeared, and the Young Lord has given no clear instructions. What exactly is the plan? Please don't let...

Knowing what troubled him, the First Elder continued gently, "The innate fortune physique enjoys heaven's unique favor, but it is also especially vulnerable to entanglements of karma. These past years, Fifth has neither fought nor grasped for anything, yielding of his own accord and even creating this... kindly atmosphere. I suspect he wishes to keep Ruyi as far as possible from karmic strife that might engulf her, nourishing her heavenly fortune with pure qi. Such earnest devotion to protecting his own is no easy thing."

The Second Elder pulled some of his attention back and snapped irritably, "As I see it, he's plainly enjoying himself!" Before he had even finished, he could not help looking toward the entrance again. If that boy Qing could come back, I could lovingly tie ribbons for him too... Ah!

Seeing that he was still utterly distracted, the First Elder shook his head slightly. This won't do. I've never been much of a talker, and I truly can't find another topic. Ah... if need be, I'll have Third Sister soothe him later. She knows best how to handle little Yuan...

At that moment, a young man behind the First Elder also sighed inwardly. He stepped forward at the right moment and picked up the conversation. "Grandfather is quite right. The Fifth Elder and his granddaughter share a deep bond, and his painstaking efforts to protect such a promising seed command the admiration of us juniors. Little Sister Ruyi is blessed with profound fortune and a pure, kind nature. She will surely become a pillar of our Yun Clan."

There was no helping it. The Second Elder would not respond, so he had to preserve his grandfather's dignity. He could hardly let his words fall to the ground unanswered.

The young man was in his early twenties, his features bearing some resemblance to the First Elder's, though his bearing was gentler and more refined. He was the First Elder's grandson, Yun Tianluo, who ranked alongside Yun Qing and Yun Ruyi among the younger generation. Together, they were known as "Heaven-raising might, moon-falling grace, and wish-fulfilling bones."

The Second Elder looked at Yun Tianluo. Seeing his vigorous bearing and the concentrated aura around him, he could tell that the young man's cultivation had advanced again. Then he thought of his own Yun Qing, still imprisoned with an uncertain future, and a jumble of emotions stirred in his heart. He merely managed a nod toward Yun Tianluo before sinking into silence yet again.

Three quarters into the hour of the dragon, the bell rang nine times, its sound shaking the nine heavens.

Clang-!

High above, the sea of clouds parted of its own accord. The Purple-Gold Imperial Road extended from the direction of the Perching Phoenix Hall, reaching all the way to the seat of honor at the highest point on the square's northern side.

Upon it, a figure in brocade robes approached with his hands clasped behind his back.

Yun Huang!

He strode upon the clouds and descended onto the raised platform of the principal seat.

No words were needed. The moment his figure appeared-

"We pay our respects to the Young Lord!"

The salutation rose in perfect unison, mountains roaring and seas surging, like thunder rolling across the sky.

Every Yun Clan disciple, steward, and elder bowed, their heads lowered in a show of supreme reverence.

Across the vast square, only the majestic echoes of their homage resounded.