The cultivators of Immortal Rosy Cloud Ridge kept urging everyone on, saying that based on their previous discoveries, the things in the Vast Sea were definitely not ordinary.
Moreover, due to the sheer size of the strange phenomenon in the vast Vast Sea, the leaked energy seems to have already attracted the attention of other forces.
That's why the other two forces hurriedly listened to Immortal Rosy Cloud Ridge's words and agreed to come together to explore the strange phenomena.
When Xu Long first arrived in this Earth Realm, he narrowly escaped death on the edge of the Vast Sea.
He hadn't yet figured out the reason for the dragon-shaped creature in the Vast Sea, but the cultivators of Immortal Rosy Cloud Ridge had already discovered the clues.
Whenever he talked about Immortal Rosy Cloud Ridge, he couldn't help but think of the cultivator in the dark blue robe, which made him feel inexplicably disgusted.
But this exploration is not only extremely important to the three forces, but also extremely important to Xu Long.
The young man was a descendant of True Dragon, and the dragon-shaped creature that Xu Long saw in the Vast Sea after surviving countless near-death experiences was destined to have some connection with the young man himself.
Regardless of whether there was a danger involved, he had to go in and find out.
As Yun Feng had said, danger and opportunity coexist in the Vast Sea, and Yun Peng was determined to enter it in order to obtain something.
Therefore, all cultivators will go all out on this trip, and it will no longer be a competition for rankings.
When facing other cultivators, the difference between life and death might be significant!
Xu Long remained inside the main hall, his eyes closed, deep in thought.
But at that moment, his True Spirit detected something unusual, coming from outside the main hall.
The Yun Ya stopped outside a giant mountain range, looking at the nine golden-roofed palaces shrouded in clouds before it, Yun Ya eyes revealing undisguised envy.
Yun Ya, within the sect, gets up earlier than the chickens and sleeps later than the dogs, working day and night to make money and build connections, yet for thousands of years, his dwelling in this blessed land remains just an ordinary cave.
Meanwhile, Junior Brother Yunmo was not well-known within the blessed land, only known because of a single word from Perfected Lord Pinglu.
The cave dwelling I was assigned to when I first arrived at the sect was already far superior to my own doghouse.
It seems that opportunity favors the prepared mind, Yun Ya was well-prepared this time.
When he first arrived at Xu Long's gate, he was a little reserved, but something seemed to be on his mind.
A resolute glint flashed across his plump face, and he stepped aside from the heavy, imposing doorway, entering the golden-roofed hall.
The main hall was empty, Yun Ya's smiling gaze suddenly fell on a figure sitting cross-legged.
As he approached, he adopted a familiar demeanor, taking small, quick steps as he spoke to the figure:
"Master Yunmo... um, Master..."
"Senior brother, you've arrived!"
When Yun Ya approached and spoke, instinctively, based on her previous interactions with Xu Long, the words "Junior Brother" almost slipped out.
But when he saw the golden hairpin above the head of the figure opposite him, the words he was about to say were swallowed back down. It was too late to quickly change his address to "Senior Brother".
At this moment, the pair of eyes opposite them opened, and the inexplicable smile in their eyes remained unchanged.
Seeing Yun Ya's awkward situation, Xu Long took the initiative to call out "Senior Brother," instantly relieving Yun Ya's predicament.
Yun Ya breathed a sigh of relief, thinking to herself: Junior Brother Yunmo is indeed a kind person; he didn't deliberately make things difficult for me after I became a core disciple!
When he came to his senses, he suddenly met Xu Long's ambiguous gaze.
Yun Ya panicked instantly, and the familiarity on her chubby face turned into embarrassment.
Yun Ya was very familiar with this gaze. Outside Yun Peng's Mystic Immortal Daoist Sanctuary, she had also fallen into this gaze, and at that time Xu Long had noticed her little movements in an instant.
When he was met in that moment of eye contact, he stopped abruptly in front of Xu Long.
Although he hadn't explained his purpose yet, Xu Long seemed to know it as before.
The two looked at each other in silence, and the atmosphere became awkward once again.
"I still don't know where you've come from, senior brother?"
After a few breaths, Xu Long, who was entrenched opposite, smiled and spoke to Yun Ya, once again relieving Yun Ya's predicament.
At the same time, with a flick of his long sleeves, a futon appeared opposite him. Xu Long gently waved his wrist, signaling Yun Ya to sit down cross-legged.
After being relieved of her predicament, Yun Ya felt a sense of relief. The words she had prepared in her mind were now mostly forgotten in front of Xu Long.
After sitting down cross-legged, Yun Ya didn't have the courage to look Xu Long in the eye again.
For some reason, when he looked into those deep eyes, he always felt as if the other person could see right through him.
He always felt exposed in front of Xu Long, but now that he sat down cross-legged, he thought of the people he had met before.
After receiving the benefits, he patted his chest loudly in front of the other party.
He said that he and Junior Brother Yunmo were sworn brothers, and that he would surely succeed in his mission to persuade Yunmo.
Seeing that Xu Long didn't seem to mind, Yun Ya slowly and earnestly said in the arena:
"Junior brother, we forged a bond of life and death while inspecting the dojos in the Boundless Wilderness. I never imagined that upon returning to this blessed land, you would already be a core disciple personally selected by the sect leader."
"Senior brother is truly happy for you! However, seeing you all alone in the Boundless Wilderness Boundless Wilderness, although it seems like you can move freely there, we are now core disciples, and the foundation of cultivation still lies within the blessed lands..."
"What suggestions do you have, senior brother?"
Seeing Yun Ya's chubby face swaying in front of him, Xu Long cleverly played the straight man.
"Haha! Good question, junior brother!"
While Yun Ya was speaking, he was still thinking about how to continue the conversation when Xu Long immediately stepped in to support him.
This made Yun Ya slap her thigh excitedly, and then she excitedly continued:
"We cultivators need four things: wealth, companion, method, and place. Junior brother, you already have three of them. Only the companion is left to consider. Do you know how much a companion can help on the path of cultivation? Not to mention, in a blessed land, if you have a companion to help you, your cultivation will be twice as effective with half the effort!"
"Go on, senior brother."
"Ah! Yes, I suppose you agree with me, Junior Brother. To be honest, ever since you selected your core disciples, I've been constantly worried about you. A Daoist partner has always been of paramount importance. I've been searching high and low within the blessed lands and have identified a few suitable candidates, which is why I've come to recommend them to you..."
"Senior brother, are you referring to the top four Yun Feng?"
"Haha, that's right, it's Yun Feng! Elder Yun Hong asked me to come..."
"Um, junior brother, what's wrong with you...?"
The fat man was spouting nonsense in front of Xu Long, but unexpectedly, Xu Long exposed his lies in no time.
He had already spoken, but now, looking at Xu Long's ambiguous smile, he was unsure of Xu Long's intentions.
His chubby face was immediately filled with anxiety.
Xu Long simply stared at Yun Ya without speaking, and the spacious hall fell into silence for a moment.
"When did you become Yun Hong's advocate, Senior Brother?"
After a long while, Yun Ya finally heard Xu Long speak again.
He hadn't dared to look Xu Long in the eye before, but after much deliberation, knowing he couldn't avoid it, he boldly met Xu Long's gaze and said:
"Junior brother! This blessed land is not Boundless Wilderness. If you truly wish to gain assistance, the sect leader and the clan cultivators must choose a side..."
Yun Ya's words were quite clever; they were meant for Xu Long Xu Long, but also served to explain her own predicament to him.
As expected, Xu Long stopped smiling at Yun Ya after hearing this.
He knew that Yun Ya didn't have the same strength as him, and would inevitably have to choose sides when facing the family cultivators and the sect leader.
But he knew that this fat man was greedy and must have received benefits from the family cultivators to dare to act as a pimp in front of him.
After saying those words, Yun Ya's expression visibly relaxed.
He no longer held back in front of Xu Long, and instead looked at Xu Long with complete swagger.
With an air of "thinking of you," she continued speaking to Xu Long:
"Elder Yun Hong did approach me, but how could I, as your senior brother, easily submit! After all, we've shared life-or-death experiences; I won't easily betray you!"
"Since we're going to establish ourselves in this blessed land, choosing a faction is inevitable! In my opinion, Senior Sister Yun Feng is the best choice. Her cultivation level, realm, family background, appearance, figure..."
"Ahem, it's only because you were among the top three, otherwise Elder Yun Hong wouldn't have noticed you!"
"It was only after I, your senior brother, pleaded with Elder Yun Hong that he finally decided to see you. I even vouched for you quite a bit..."
"In that case, I'm truly sorry to trouble you, Senior Brother!"
Xu Long watched as the fat man spoke eloquently and incessantly in front of him, coupled with his earnest and persuasive manner, addressing him as "junior brother" at every turn.
If someone doesn't understand Yun Ya, they might actually think that the other party is considering their own interests.
But Xu Long knew this guy's nature perfectly well. Even a fool could tell that the fat man had been promised benefits.
This guy's rapping in front of me is incredibly shameless, but Xu Long doesn't intend to expose him. He'll just see how long he can keep up this act.
"Oh dear! Junior brother, I've said so much, can't you at least give me a reply?"
Yun Ya leaned slightly against the futon, his plump body parched from his long speech.
Seeing Xu Long still calmly occupying the field, he felt a growing urgency.
"Since Senior Brother knows I am the guardian of this dojo, why force me to align myself with the clan cultivators? I appreciate their kindness, but let's leave the rest aside..."
"What did you say? You! Junior brother, that Yun Feng is..."
Upon hearing Xu Long politely decline her offer, Yun Ya, who was leaning against the futon, seemed to be electrocuted and instantly sprang up from the spot.
A chubby face was turned towards Xu Long, his brows furrowed in worry.
As he spoke, he gestured with his hands, as if trying to depict Yun Feng's appearance in front of Xu Long.
Xu Long couldn't help but chuckle as he watched a ball of flesh bouncing in front of him.
However, he had already made up his mind that it would be best to politely decline the invitation from the family cultivators.
Having been selected from the core disciples, he already Daoist School's cultivators might be of little influence.
Within the blessed land, the sect leader Yunlong still made the decisions with a single word, and his base of operations was the Daoist temple in the Boundless Wilderness.
The forces within this blessed land are far too complex; once involved, one will inevitably face a struggle for interests between the sect leader and the family cultivators.
Even if he and Yun Feng become Daoist partners, they will still be entangled in endless karma.
Although Xu Long's combat power is now comparable to that of Late-stage Mystic Immortal, he still has no confidence in winning against Half-Step Golden Immortal like Yunxiang and Yunlong.
Even if you're going to take sides, you need to have enough strength.
The reason why the clan's cultivators are weak is because they are not strong enough and have no means to restrain the sect leader, Yunlong.
As Half-Step Golden Immortal, Yunlong only used a few tricks during the selection process to severely punish them.
Therefore, when faced with attempts to win him over, Xu Long refused without hesitation.
Because he knew clearly what he truly needed: the perilous Boundless Wilderness was his true domain.
However, beneath the seemingly peaceful and safe blessed land lies a turbulent undercurrent, where a slight misstep could draw one into the karmic entanglement.
Only when one has sufficient strength can one stir up waves and cover the undercurrents beneath.
Only when one's own strength allows can one truly establish oneself within this blessed land!
Therefore, Xu Long had already rejected the attempts by the family cultivators to win him over, but he never expected that they would actually offer Yun Feng as a bribe.
Xu Long had seen the female cultivator Yun Feng in detail during the grand ceremony of announcing the results of the imperial examinations; her appearance was indeed quite outstanding.
Her spirited face also carried a subtle hint of coquettishness, perfectly inheriting the appearance of Elder Yun Hong.
In comparison, Yun Feng is the only female cultivator among the core twelve.
With the backing of her family's group of cultivators, she was inevitably groomed as a key member of the cultivation team.
If one could marry into the family, they would have access to a great deal of resources.
Xu Long watched as Yun Ya continued to try to persuade him, and chuckled inwardly.
Unexpectedly, Yunlong changed his mind and demanded that these people exchange their own children. How could Xu Long dare to participate in such a situation?
Xu Long himself was among the top three, and he knew that Yun Feng's standards must be extremely high. She herself was among the top four, so she wouldn't look for a Daoist partner below her.
Aside from Xu Long, it seems that only Yun Feng and Yun Peng are available as options.
Yun Feng, needless to say, is the sect leader's personal disciple and will inevitably stand on the sect leader's side.
As for Yun Peng, he is completely devoid of desire, or rather, he doesn't value matters of desire at all right now.
His heart belonged only to his senior brother Yun Kun. These two best friends had formed an extremely deep bond from their time as mortal adopted children to their current status.
His most important task right now is to enter the Vast Sea and see if he can find some precious spiritual essences of heaven and earth for his senior brother Yun Kun, so that he can restore his former cultivation and reconnect with the severed path to immortality.
Therefore, it seems that Xu Long is truly the only one to choose from among the core disciples.
Elder Yun Hong was very thoughtful.
He knew that Yunmo had no roots or fellow disciples in the blessed land.
They even went to great lengths to find Yun Ya, hoping to persuade him based on his familiarity with Xu Long.
What he didn't know was that Xu Long had already designated the Boundless Wilderness as the path to enlightenment, and he would avoid the vortex within this blessed land at all costs.
Despite Yun Ya's endless persuasion, Xu Long politely declined with just one sentence.
"Senior brother, there's no need to persuade me any further. I've only returned this time to gain access to the Vast Sea. As for the clan's cultivators, I will not get involved."
"Ah? Junior brother... sigh!"
Yun Ya's words were abruptly interrupted by Xu Long. Yun Ya noticed that the smile in Xu Long's eyes had disappeared, so he wisely kept quiet.