"Jia Yuan City is here, and Old Aunt Mountain is here. The straight-line distance must be over a thousand kilometers. Walking there really would be exhausting and time-consuming. At least three months one way, half a year for the round trip. Looks like we'll have to use a hot-air balloon, but it probably can't carry enough fuel for both legs. Fly there and walk back?"
Her gaze searched the map as she planned the return route. "On the way back, we'll first fly to Azure Cloud Prefecture in Qing Province, then travel by water, down the Azure Cloud River and into the canal, then back to Jia Yuan City. That should leave us enough fuel. Two days there, one month back."
Travel was inconvenient. Never mind mortals-even cultivators had to spend enormous amounts of time on the road, sometimes hundreds of years.
The old man had no idea what was in the adjoining room. When Mo Caihuan emerged with a plan already firmly in mind, he found it puzzling.
"Sorry for the trouble, sir, but please come with me. I'll pay you three times the travel expenses."
"No problem." The old man agreed as soon as he heard about the triple payment, but he never imagined he would be taking flight.
Mo Caihuan entrusted the Whale-Jiao Society's affairs to her mother and set out.
The old man was blindfolded and taken by carriage to the research base deep in the mountains.
When he could see his surroundings again, he found an enormous floating sphere before him. It seemed to be woven from lightweight silk, but he had no idea what it was.
"Here." A society member beside him handed him something fluffy.
The old man took it and discovered that it was a sable coat.
"Girl, what is this?" he asked.
"A sable coat."
"I don't mean the coat. I mean that sphere," the old man asked again.
"A hot-air balloon. We're flying straight to Old Aunt Mountain," Mo Caihuan said. "Enough chatter. Get aboard."
There were four of them in all: Mo Caihuan, the old man, and two society members.
"Third Miss, everything's ready."
"Let's go."
Once the old man climbed into the wicker basket, the hot-air balloon lifted off. His legs went weak with fright. He wasn't an immortal-how could he possibly fly?
He watched the society members and Mo Caihuan take turns working pedals connected to something that spun.
It was a propeller. Without an internal combustion engine, it relied entirely on martial artists' internal energy. The pedals were connected to a wooden propeller; as long as they kept pedaling, it would spin and generate thrust to propel the balloon.
Two people pedaled, while one handled steering and adding coal. A balloon crew needed at least three people, and for combat, it would also need a grenadier.
With a hot-air balloon, they could travel in a straight line.
Along the way, they needed a compass and the stars to determine their position. If they truly couldn't get their bearings, they would have to land and ask for directions.
Flying was a troublesome business too.
The old man was stunned. Now he understood why the Five Colors Sect had vanished overnight-they had used hot-air balloons. He felt increasingly glad of his choice. As long as they weathered this crisis, the Whale-Jiao Society had a brighter future than the Five Colors Sect.
Mo Caihuan had estimated that they could arrive in two days, but that was under ideal conditions. Unfortunately, this was their first long-distance flight, and their navigation was inaccurate. They landed twice to ask for directions, and the journey took four days.
At last, they reached Old Aunt Mountain, landed, and concealed the hot-air balloon, covering its deflated envelope with dead branches and rotting leaves.
"Stay here and guard the balloon. We'll be back as soon as we can."
The two society members agreed and remained beside the balloon.
The old man took off his sable coat. For the first time, he understood what it meant for the heights to be unbearably cold. Even his eyeballs had felt frozen.
The old man led the way from there, turning this way and that as though navigating a maze, until they reached a valley shrouded in mist.
"This mist is a restriction laid down by cultivators. To get inside, you either need someone from within to escort you or you need to know the method," the old man said.
"You've been here before?"
"When I was young, I was told I had no spiritual roots. I refused to give up, so I followed the method recorded by my family and entered the cultivators' market. Ah." At that, he let out a long sigh filled with helpless resignation.
Mo Caihuan understood everything behind that sigh. It was surrender to fate, the despair of admitting that he was ordinary.
"Let's go." She had no time for melancholy. What mattered most now was getting the Covering Moon Sect to protect the Mo family.
"Stay close. One wrong step and you'll be lost. Unless a cultivator takes pity and lets you out, you'll die in there," the old man said.
"All right."
The old man was skilled in martial arts, and his lightness skill was exceptional. He had expected Mo Caihuan to struggle to keep up, yet she maintained exactly the same distance from him the entire time. Did this youngster start cultivating in her mother's womb? She's only fifteen, isn't she?
Mo Caihuan trained extremely hard. A child's body brimmed with life energy, and retaining that abundant energy within the body was the essence of virgin cultivation, so ten years of training was equivalent to twenty.
After following a complicated route, they passed through the mist, and the view before them opened up.
Within the valley, filled with birdsong and fragrant flowers, stood a sizable town, its buildings packed together like fish scales and the teeth of a comb, its scenery uniquely beautiful.
Even more astonishing were the cultivators flying overhead, riding all manner of strange artifacts: swords, boats, carriages... They exuded an ethereal air, graceful and extraordinary.
"Stop envying them." Seeing Mo Caihuan's yearning expression, the old man knew she envied the cultivators.
Envy was no use. In the end, she turned her gaze back to the ground.
The old man led her to a shop called the Rising Moon Tower. Once inside, he told the shop attendant, "This humble one is Ximen Shan of the Ximen Family, a descendant of Ximen Hu. We have brought an Ascension Token to request the Covering Moon Sect's aid."
Mo Caihuan took out the Ascension Token and handed it to the attendant.
The attendant examined it, returned it, and went to summon the elder in charge of the shop.
Soon, an elderly woman in a court gown approached, radiating a powerful aura of pressure. "Hand over the token," she said in a tone that brooked no argument.
At those words, Mo Caihuan felt her mind reel and panic rise within her. Not daring to delay, she took out the token.
The older woman, who still retained traces of her former beauty, inspected it and said, "It is indeed an Ascension Token. Which of you wishes to become a disciple?"
"We wouldn't presume," the old man said. "We hope to obtain the Covering Moon Sect's protection."
The elderly woman said nothing. Suddenly, she reached out and placed one hand on each of their shoulders. She soon withdrew them and said, "Neither of you has spiritual roots. You cannot become disciples, indeed. Tell me, what is the matter?"
The old man gave a complete account of how the Whale-Jiao Society had wiped out the Five Colors Sect, not daring to waste the immortal's time.
"So you fear retaliation from the Spirit Beast Gate and want the Covering Moon Sect to mediate?" the elderly woman asked, narrowing her eyes.
"At first, this junior didn't know that cultivators were backing the Five Colors Sect, which is why we offended an immortal," Mo Caihuan said. "Please mediate on our behalf. Whatever tribute the Five Colors Sect paid to Spirit Beast Mountain, the Whale-Jiao Society is willing to continue paying it, without a single coin missing. We are also willing to prepare an identical tribute for the Covering Moon Sect."
"Heh. What use do we cultivators have for gold and silver? I suspect it wasn't Spirit Beast Mountain backing the Five Colors Sect at all, merely some cultivator coveting wealth and luxury." In her view, Spirit Beast Mountain was, after all, one of the seven great sects. It would hardly covet gold, silver, and jewels. Some individual must have been supporting the Five Colors Sect, though even a single cultivator would be trouble for mortals.
"Do you truly wish to exchange the Ascension Token for the Covering Moon Sect's intervention?"
"Yes," Mo Caihuan said.
What a waste. These two have no idea what they're holding, the elderly woman thought. Why not pocket the Ascension Token myself? An Ascension Token doesn't just secure a place as a disciple-it can also be exchanged for a Foundation Establishment Pill.
With that in mind, she said, "I am an elder of the Covering Moon Sect. Since you have brought an Ascension Token, leave this minor matter to us. Go home. Spirit Beast Mountain will not trouble you."
Mo Caihuan and the old man exchanged looks, sensing something amiss.
The old man was a wily old fox with ample experience in the martial world. He knew that the larger the sect, the more importance it placed on keeping a record of its dealings. How could a mere verbal assurance suffice?
Mo Caihuan, meanwhile, remembered the original novel. Han Li had taken his Ascension Token straight to the sect master of Yellow Maple Valley, and only after the sect master agreed was the token collected. Everything had been very formal. This procedure isn't right, but she has the Ascension Token. I can't take it back.
At that thought, she immediately dropped to her knees and prostrated herself, crying out, "Thank you, Elder, for redressing our grievances! Thank you for redressing our grievances-"
She channeled her internal energy into her voice, making it audible even to passersby outside the shop.
Customers and passersby alike turned to watch the commotion.
Mo Caihuan continued at the top of her voice, "The Covering Moon Sect's Ascension Token really works! Everyone, make sure you render meritorious service to the Covering Moon Sect! The Covering Moon Sect won't use its power to bully others, won't mistreat the descendants of those who served it, and won't fear Spirit Beast Mountain's wrongdoing! It will demand justice from Spirit Beast Mountain..."
The elder's expression darkened. She hadn't expected the girl to suddenly cause such a commotion. Had she known, she would have received them in a private room. Her scheme had been a spur-of-the-moment impulse, and she simply hadn't prepared enough.