Heaven Mending Pavilion

Xiao Tian had no intention of stirring up trouble. He only wanted to check in quietly.

Then he would enter the Transverse Mountain Range, gather heavenly materials and earthly treasures, hunt Pure-Blooded Fierce Beasts, and carry his Classic of Mountains and Seas cookbook to greater heights.

He would open his eleventh Heavenly Grotto and, ideally, break through to the spirit transformation realm in the Transverse Mountain Range.

He disliked fighting across major cultivation realms. He preferred using a higher realm to bully others.

The closer he got to the Heaven Mending Pavilion, the more cultivators he encountered. They were parties from great clans and ancient kingdoms, bringing their children to take the pavilion's entrance trial.

There were knights riding Savage Beasts and Fierce Birds, and others traveling on treasure ships, flying swords, and beast hides.

There were far too many people-probably over a hundred thousand.

Of course, members of nearby minor clans and wandering cultivators had also come to try their luck. If they passed the trial and joined the Heaven Mending Pavilion, they would soar straight into the heavens.

In truth, the Heaven Mending Pavilion was already on the decline. Its Sacrificial Spirit was old and wounded, and had fallen from the divine fire realm. The current pavilion master was only at the peak of array formation, not even in the venerable realm. That alone put it a cut below its former standing.

In its glorious days, the Heaven Mending Pavilion had a divine fire realm Sacrificial Spirit presiding over it. Only a Venerable was qualified to become pavilion master, and even the weakest grand elders had reached advanced array formation. The first and second grand elders were usually Venerables themselves. Only then did it live up to the stature of an ancient sacred land whose legacy stretched back to the Ancient Era.

He heard that Shi Yi had arrived long ago, drawn by the Heaven Mending Pavilion's Ancient Sacred Academy.

Xiao Tian did not care in the least. Everyone had their own opportunities. So what if Shi Yi entered the Ancient Sacred Academy of the Heaven Mending Pavilion? Could it possibly be more precious than the Kun Peng Precious Technique?

Besides, the old Sacrificial Spirit, the Gourd Vine, was the real living treasure trove. As long as it was willing to teach him, he could surely dig out some good things.

He simply found a large roadside rock at the foot of the Heaven Mending Pavilion's mountain, sat cross-legged, and quietly began cultivating the Deceit Beast Treasure Art. Now that he had split into two bodies, even cultivation took half the time.

The Bai Ze Treasure Art was upright and radiant, possessed the virtue of a king, and was impervious to all arts.

The Deceit Beast Treasure Art crossed the sea under heaven's unsuspecting gaze and stole the sky to replace the sun. It deceived heaven, earth, people out of their wealth and lovers-and even oneself. It was practically the ancestor of all deceitful paths. When truth became falsehood, falsehood became truth; when falsehood became truth, truth became falsehood.

Xiao Tian waited quietly. He had not expected that wait to last a month and a half.

No one disturbed him during that time.

In fact, the ancient sacred land of the Heaven Mending Pavilion still commanded considerable awe. Everyone who came restrained their juniors, forbidding them from making trouble. This was no place to run wild.

"Fellow cultivators, our Heaven Mending Pavilion only recruits talented young disciples, not old men and old women."

An old man sat cross-legged before the Heaven Mending Pavilion's gates. As his eyes opened and closed, runes interwove into a dense expanse, vast as a sea or desert. They actually stirred the sound of wind and thunder, rumbling so loudly that those present with insufficient cultivation suffered ringing ears and blurred vision.

Why had so many people come? Mainly because Shi Hao was a troublemaker. He had deliberately sold information about his whereabouts, teaming up with the Crystal Wall old-timer and Lord Bird to earn crystal walls.

"Please forgive us, fellow cultivator. We have come to watch the ceremony for the sake of our clans' children. Sorry for the trouble, and please pardon our intrusion."

An elder from a great clan immediately stepped forward and spoke courteously.

Clang!

Five-colored rosy light swirled in the distance as a Five-Colored Luan Bird appeared, leaving a rainbow bridge stretching across the sky. Divine radiance flowed around it as it arrived before the Heaven Mending Pavilion's gates. Seated upon it was a woman in golden battle armor. Her eyebrows resembled willow leaves, her lovely face was flawless, and her lips were vermilion. Her close-fitting golden armor perfectly outlined her proud figure and graceful curves, enough to leave stodgy scholars dazed and stir worldly desires in eminent monks.

But that was not the point. Who was that person?

Everyone stared, dumbfounded, at a certain someone whose paws were wrapped around the War Goddess's waist.

Many felt their hearts shatter with a crackling crash, leaving a chest full of broken pieces.

The War Goddess was helpless. She could not shake Xiao Tian off. She had originally planned to set off in secret and visit the Heaven Mending Pavilion to see whether she could snatch that Bear Child away and bring him into the Deer-Chasing Academy. Yet halfway through the flight, she discovered that this fellow had somehow followed her unnoticed. Neither she nor the Five-Colored Luan Bird had detected him.

And that had led to the scene before them.

She could neither shake him off nor beat him in a fight.

More importantly, Xiao Tian really was outstanding. The War Goddess had a cheerful, lively personality, and her grandfather had spoken to her about him several times.

Xiao Tian truly was exceptional. If she had to choose a cultivation partner in this lifetime, he was clearly the best choice.

Besides, this fellow was far too silver-tongued. On the way, she had merely said, "I'm five years older than you." Before she could finish the rest, he had rattled off a rhyme:

"A woman three years older brings a gold brick to your shoulder. Thirty years older, she gives you a kingdom. Three hundred years older, she gives you immortal pills. Three thousand years older, you join the immortal ranks. Thirty thousand years older, the Queen Mother feeds you herself. Three hundred thousand years older, you stand before the Buddha's door."

At the time, the War Goddess had thought it was nonsense, but after considering it carefully, she found it rather reasonable.

In any case, they had spent over a month traveling three hundred thousand li. He had made her laugh countless times along the way. She only felt that Xiao Tian was a little body with a grown-up mind, nothing like a twelve-year-old boy.

Naturally, Xiao Tian picked whatever sounded pleasant to say. He even thumped his chest and promised that if he found that Bear Child, he would beat him into submission and make him join the Deer-Chasing Academy.

In reality, there was no way he could find that brat Shi Hao. He was only saying it to make the beauty happy.

After arriving, the War Goddess began looking around, her gaze flashing like lightning. She really was innocent. If Shi Hao were that easy to find, he would have died ten thousand times already.

"Little girl from the Deer-Chasing Academy, you've overstepped your bounds."

The old man before the Heaven Mending Pavilion's gates spoke.

"Senior, we're only here to look. We've come on behalf of the Deer-Chasing Academy to observe the ceremony."

Xiao Tian hurriedly spoke up.

The War Goddess was very pleased with Xiao Tian's answer, and a smile appeared on her luminous face. She stood up, her legs straight and her waist supple as a willow, then moved the paws wrapped around her waist aside. Looking at the Heaven Mending Pavilion elder, she said, "He's my junior brother. Sorry for the trouble, Senior."

"The trial begins."

The elder stationed at the Heaven Mending Pavilion's entrance said nothing more, merely giving Xiao Tian a couple of extra looks.

While Xiao Tian's Blue Calabash Brother body busied itself courting a cultivation partner for him, his Red Baby body took the opportunity to slip into the Heaven Mending Pavilion's trial grounds and enter the Eighth Zone.

He remembered that Shi Hao would come here. He needed to learn Furball's treasure art from Shi Hao as soon as possible. His Deceit Beast Treasure Art had reached great mastery, allowing him to perform a few transformations, but it was still not as specialized as Furball's Innate Treasure Art.

Gravity had been set up here to test the children's bodies. Xiao Tian charged straight into the depths of the Eighth Zone, hid near a treasure bone serving as a formation foundation, and waited quietly.

Sure enough, before long, a chubby-faced boy appeared, looking thoroughly furtive.

Xiao Tian really wanted to give him a whack with a club and let some magnificent bumps sprout on his head.

"Baby Hao, your big brother finally caught you."

Xiao Tian revealed himself, growing out of his tiny ant form. Shi Hao was so startled that he nearly threw a punch at him.

"Big brother?"

Shi Hao sounded a little puzzled.

"That's right, it's me. Hurry and teach me that treasure art you use to change your form. I have a treasure art to trade with you too."

Xiao Tian spoke with burning urgency.

Shi Hao heard Xiao Tian's words and watched him immediately teach him a treasure art first-the Pulao Treasure Art, no less.

Now Shi Hao was utterly convinced. It had to be Xiao Tian. Only he would treat treasure arts as though they were nothing precious.

What he had given him was a divine fire realm Pulao Treasure Art! Like the Suanni Precious Technique, it belonged to a dragon lineage, and the two could be integrated to some extent.

Moreover, it was a sonic treasure art that could make up for some of Shi Hao's weaknesses.

The two studied the treasure arts they had received together. In less than half an hour, both had made gains. After all, their comprehension and natural gifts ranked among the very best under heaven.

Shi Hao continued digging up Primordial Treasure Bones. These bones contained Dao patterns that could be studied in depth. For cultivators of the Array Dao, they were top-grade materials. In other words, they could be exchanged for crystal walls.

Crystal walls were cultivation resources in the Lower Realm similar to spirit stones, necessities for cultivators.

With the Xiao Clan behind him, Xiao Tian had never worried about such resources. His contributions to the clan over the years more than justified what he had consumed.

Unfortunately, the Zhu Yan treasure art was incomplete. Shi Hao said the same thing: Furball had nearly died when he was found, and the innate bone inscriptions on his body had become incomplete as well. Many of his Innate Treasure Arts could not be learned.

For example, Three Heads and Six Arms, and the Seventy-Two Transformations.

An hour later!

Inside the Eighth Zone!

Xiao Tian felt the pressure on his body ease and curled his lips. It seemed Little One had finished the job. He had dug out the treasure bones maintaining the formation in this area, and the formation's pressure had vanished. A good show was coming.

As for Xiao Tian, he only needed to follow the crowd and blend in.

All he wanted was to join the Heaven Mending Pavilion and find an opportunity to check in at the Sacrificial Spirit.

This check-in was very different, and he was actually looking forward to it. After all, the Heaven Mending Pavilion's Sacrificial Spirit was a Gourd Vine, a perfect match for his innate talents.

Perhaps this check-in would give him a chance to obtain the Innate Talent Panels of other Calabash Brothers.

Outside, Elder Xiong Fei began counting the talented youths emerging from the Eighth Zone. Since more talented youths had come this time, the Heaven Mending Pavilion naturally intended to select the best of the best. Even the formations were more difficult than those used in the previous two selections.

"One, two, three, four... four hundred eighty-nine, four hundred ninety.

The Eighth Zone really is extraordinary. Have all the talented disciples gathered here? How rare."

Elder Xiong Fei, an inscription realm expert, spoke with slight puzzlement.

"It's nothing much. It has indeed surpassed previous years, but that's a good thing. Given the difficulty of this trial, anyone who passes is a promising seedling."

Elder Zhuo Yun stroked his beard and praised them in satisfaction.

However, when people began pouring out in groups, arms draped over each other's shoulders, Elder Zhuo Yun's hand shook, pulling out several strands of his beard. His lips trembled uncontrollably, whether from pain or anger, no one could tell.

Elder Xiong Fei's bull-like eyes widened, and he stood dumbfounded. Finally, his complexion began changing, more spectacularly than a face-changing performance: white tinged with red, red tinged with black, then pitch-black, sickly green, vivid blue, and deep purple.

In the end, Elder Xiong Fei felt dizzy and faint. He hurriedly reached up and pressed his Renzhong Acupoint, taking a deep breath before finally recovering.

At some point, Xiao Tian had come to Elder Xiong Fei's side. "Elder, are you all right? And this elder too-are you both injured?"

Elder Xiong Fei and Elder Zhuo Yun glanced at Xiao Tian's one-point-eight-meter-tall Li Xiaoyao appearance. "Child, how old are you? How did you get in?"

"Elders, I'm twelve.

I walked in."

Xiao Tian immediately answered solemnly.

"Mm, good child. You certainly grew in a hurry. Go stand over there first."

Xiong Fei forced a "kindly" grimace onto his face, smiling more hideously than if he had been crying.

(End of chapter)