The birthday banquet

Hearing Yun Ying's words, Yin Xue was struck speechless, unsure how to respond.

"See? I told you Little Ying wasn't interested in these things," Yun Xi said with a laugh.

"You really do know your little sister best," Yin Xue had to admit with a nod.

As she spoke, Yin Xue looked into the distance again, her gaze turning odd. "Yun Ying, besides Yun Xi and me coming here, there's a whole crowd gathered over there. Look at them-they practically seem to be drooling."

"When I was on the sacred mountain, I heard that quite a few people especially liked seeing you without shoes. Apparently, it's called something like... a foot fetish. Yes, that's it."

"Pfft... what are you talking about? Who would have such a strange fetish?" Yun Xi burst out laughing.

But Yin Xue was perfectly serious. "I heard it with my own ears. Not a single word of it is false."

Yun Ying's expression remained calm, with no particular reaction, leaving Yin Xue to shrug helplessly. This unflappable girl had no idea how popular she was.

Yin Xue could already imagine how many eyes Yun Ying would draw at the Stone Emperor's birthday banquet.

"Who knows how many hearts will be broken then?" Yin Xue said meaningfully, then winked at Yun Xi.

Yun Xi shrugged. She knew Yin Xue was talking about her little sister, and she had long since anticipated this herself.

At that, Yun Ying merely gave a faint smile, as fleeting as a glimpse of a startled swan, and said nothing.

In the blink of an eye, the day of the Stone Emperor's birthday banquet arrived.

The palace gates stood wide open, welcoming guests from across the world into the imperial city to attend the banquet and offer birthday wishes to the Stone Emperor.

Outside the gates crouched two enormous bi'an, imposing and majestic. They were powerful primordial remnants with very pure bloodlines.

The arriving guests were numerous, all of them powerful cultivators, and they poured into the palace in groups.

Yun Ying and the other guests from the Primordial Sacred Mountain also arrived, passing through the gates and heading deeper into the palace.

This time, although she was still barefoot, no Sword Blossoms bloomed beneath her feet. Yet a careful look would reveal that her soles never touched the ground, remaining just a tiny distance above it.

She appeared to be walking deeper into the palace just like everyone else.

Still, many powerful cultivators noticed that her every movement accorded with heaven and earth, exuding a profound, mysterious aura.

This startled many of them. It seemed to be the Heaven-Man Unity Realm. Could the so-called Celestial Clan remain in this state indefinitely? That was rather too terrifying. They had never even heard of such a thing.

The Heaven-Man Unity Realm was a state that even supreme experts struggled to enter, one that could only be triggered under special circumstances.

Once someone entered the Heaven-Man Unity Realm, their combat power would soar, and their understanding of runes would rise by a tremendous margin. It was truly formidable.

And if someone could remain in that state indefinitely, the very thought was frightening.

"The talent of Heavenly God Mountain's heir in this generation is truly terrifying!"

Whether human or of other races, the powerful cultivators all felt a deep fear of Yun Ying's potential.

As they proceeded, the arriving guests caught glimpses of the Stone Kingdom's imperial family's immense reserves of power, and were shaken to their cores.

Soon, Yun Ying and the others passed through a massive archway and arrived before the Central Heavenly Palace. Here, a layer of white clouds constantly surged across the ground, reaching up to their knees.

This was where the Stone Emperor's birthday banquet would be held.

Creatures of all different forms could be seen entering the Central Heavenly Palace, emanating heart-quaking auras. They were powerful cultivators from the various great factions, with no shortage of Venerables among them.

Everyone else could only remain in the square outside. Jade tables and chairs had already been set out throughout it, and white mist swirled around them, making it resemble the heavenly realm.

The banquet had yet to begin, and it was still early. Rather than staying in the lounge, everyone had come outside to converse.

"Look, it's Fairy Yun Xi and her little sister, Fairy Yun Ying!"

Yun Ying and the others immediately drew considerable attention upon their arrival.

These two dazzling pearls of the Primordial Sacred Mountain stood out here like cranes among chickens, far too radiant. Though the square held many young, beautiful women, they still paled considerably beside the sisters.

The difference was not merely in their looks, but even more in their bearing, and this was especially apparent in Yun Ying.

She possessed an immortal aura that even ordinary people could sense, radiating from within. She seemed nothing like a woman of the mortal world, yet she did not feel excessively aloof or proud. It was all perfectly natural.

Perhaps many people had no idea what a true immortal maiden looked like, but after seeing Yun Ying, they would think, Oh, so this is what an immortal maiden looks like.

"Wow, Yun Xi, look. The way these people are staring at Yun Ying, their eyes are practically glowing green," Yin Xue said, covering her face as she laughed.

Yun Xi laughed too. It was true-even she, Yun Ying's twin sister, was eclipsed in her presence.

"You go ahead and chat," Yun Ying said, then sat beside a nearby unoccupied jade table and did nothing else.

In everyone's eyes, the scene was like a painting. An exquisitely beautiful girl sat there, her skin like congealed cream and her bright eyes full of grace. Her long purple ponytail hung into the mist. She possessed something of an immortal maiden's coolness and something of a young girl's gentle elegance, a beauty beyond taking in.

This left quite a few young men staring transfixed, their hearts pounding.

"Yun Xi, why does it feel like Yun Ying has been growing more elegant and more captivating lately?" Yin Xue murmured.

Yun Xi glanced at her little sister and nodded. "I've noticed that too. It's probably because of her cultivation realm."

"So that's it." Yin Xue thought that made sense.

"All right, don't worry about Little Ying. She'll be fine on her own." Yun Xi, Yin Xue, and the others turned and left to greet some people they knew.

Although the people from the Primordial Sacred Mountain had walked away, hardly anyone dared approach Yun Ying to strike up a conversation. They merely stood a short distance away, stealing glances.

In the eyes of many young men, Yun Ying was like a green lotus, quietly elegant and untouched by worldly dust. They dared admire her only from afar, afraid to draw near lest they disturb the scene.

After a while, everyone saw a boy abruptly barge into the area, then head straight toward Yun Ying.

"Hey, long time no see."

The boy greeted Yun Ying with easy familiarity, then plopped down, leaving everyone around them dumbstruck. Good grief, didn't he see that none of us dared go up and disturb the fairy?

Yun Ying looked at the boy. A little gray Wolf Pup perched on his shoulder, with a pair of small wings. It was quite adorable.

"I should call you Shi Hao now, right?" Yun Ying said with a soft smile.

Opposite her, the Bear Child-or rather, Shi Hao-looked dazed for an instant. Even he had lost himself in Yun Ying's smile.

The sounds of people falling over came from nearby. It was not just Shi Hao; many of those who saw Yun Ying smile could no longer stand steadily.

Yet when they came to their senses and looked again, Yun Ying's expression was as calm as still water, as though that smile had been nothing but an illusion.