That surging consciousness spread for only an instant. Before anyone could properly register it, a figure appeared upon the lofty throne.
It was the slender silhouette of a woman, yet she seemed to contain the radiance of an entire star-filled sky. Mysterious and unfathomable, she was veiled in shifting light and shadow so that no one could clearly distinguish her features.
The spiritual senses that many cultivators had unconsciously released were repelled hundreds of steps short of the throne. They could not probe even the slightest detail.
The woman seemed at once immeasurably imposing and perfectly ordinary. One thing, however, was certain: she was extraordinarily powerful.
Without allowing even a trace of pressure to escape, she had already left everyone present shaken to the soul.
Then a clear, crystalline voice sounded. It was not loud, but every word was engraved deeply into the listeners’ seas of consciousness.
“Ruyi Immortal Estate is greatly honored by the arrival of our guests.”
The voice was exquisite and deeply moving. Hearing it inspired the desire to devote one’s life to her service. Yet the sensation felt entirely unforced, like a wholehearted and fervent offering made of one’s own free will.
Such astonishing charisma almost unsettled the hearts of everyone in attendance!
She was the subject of this birthday celebration, Mu Wuxin, the present Estate Mistress of Ruyi Immortal Estate, known as Venerable Jade Maiden.
This year marked her ten-thousandth birthday. She had therefore sent out immortal invitations to outstanding members of the Eastern Region’s great sects, as well as accomplished rogue cultivators of the immortal path.
Rumor had it that Mu Wuxin had entered the Mahayana stage five thousand years ago. After her master’s ascension, she had succeeded her as Estate Mistress, and another five thousand years had since passed.
During that seemingly endless lifespan, who could know how many profound techniques she had cultivated, much less what level her cultivation had now reached?
For someone at Mu Wuxin’s level, physical beauty had long ceased to matter. Even had she been as ugly as the legendary Wuyan, the commanding presence she had cultivated over her long years in power would still have allowed her to look down upon the world!
Among the many cultivation worlds, a Mahayana cultivator was already the equivalent of a half-immortal!
The assembled talents and rising stars fell quiet at the appearance of this Jade Maiden Venerable. They were not quite trembling with fear, but their reverence was unmistakable.
Beyond Mahayana came the Tribulation Transcendence stage. Once such a cultivator sensed the call of the Immortal Realm, they could undergo their heavenly tribulation and ascend at any time. Ascension to the Immortal Realm was the highest aspiration of every cultivator.
Xu Ziqing gazed at the Estate Mistress with yearning of his own. To him, the hidden force surrounding Mu Wuxin resembled an endlessly turning whirlpool, making her whole being seem like a colossal black hole whose dark maw might open and devour someone at any moment.
It was truly… breathtakingly, overwhelmingly powerful.
Once Mu Wuxin had taken her seat, the birthday banquet began at once.
After uttering her greeting, she had drawn her presence inward again. Without that oppressive sensation bearing down on everyone, the atmosphere in the great hall relaxed.
According to custom, the gifts would be announced before the banquet itself began.
A splendidly dressed female cultivator with cloudlike hair stepped forward, parted her red lips and announced, “Fellow Daoists, please present your gifts and offer birthday congratulations to the Estate Mistress!”
Dozens of other women emerged and went to the leaders of the many sect delegations, collecting their gift lists and delivering them to the gorgeously dressed announcer.
The Wuling Immortal Sect was no exception. A beautiful woman in a red jacket and skirt approached with a charming smile. “May I ask who has the gift list?”
She too evidently held some status. A dense aura enveloped her, marking her as a Golden Core cultivator.
Yun Lie raised his hand and passed her a sheet of paper. “Please.”
The woman’s smile stiffened slightly when she looked at him. She accepted the paper and turned away. She had arrived all smiles, but departed with little warmth left in her expression, plainly put off by Yun Lie’s taciturn coldness.
The nearby Wuling Immortal Sect core disciples looked at one another and smiled wryly.
Had their deputy, Ou Mubai, been entrusted with the list, he would surely have conversed with her in a graceful, courteous manner. Yun Lie, by contrast, was so unapproachable that he had needlessly annoyed the beauty and discouraged her friendly overtures.
Elsewhere, a Golden Core Perfected One stood and brushed the storage bracelet on his wrist. A jade casket about two chi square appeared in his palm, which he held securely.
The woman in ceremonial dress opened a gift list and announced, “Ancestor Honghe congratulates the Estate Mistress on her birthday and presents one ten-thousand-year-old clam pearl!”
Xu Ziqing’s interest stirred, and he paid closer attention.
It was a rare opportunity to witness a celebration for a Mahayana Venerable. He would surely learn a great deal.
The Golden Core cultivator formed a hand seal and brushed it over the casket. The lid opened, releasing such brilliant light that people could scarcely keep their eyes open.
Fortunately the burst lasted only an instant. The light quickly subsided, though a soft, luminous glow still surrounded the contents, gentle and beautiful.
Only then did the cultivators see a perfectly round pearl as large as a human head inside the jade casket. Smooth, lustrous and translucent, it was almost colorless and exceptionally pure.
What sort of enormous clam could have produced such an immense pearl? Remembering that the announcer had called it ten thousand years old, the spectators were stunned.
A ten-thousand-year pearl, nurtured for ten thousand years…
The Golden Core cultivator declared proudly, “My master, Ancestor Honghe, personally battled a seventh-rank demon clam for several days before slaying it and obtaining this ten-thousand-year pearl. He offers it to the Estate Mistress, wishing her everlasting fortune and longevity and an early place among the immortals!”
A seventh-rank demon beast was the equal of a Nascent Soul cultivator. Demon clams were especially unusual creatures. Instead of forming demon cores, they nurtured pearls that contained all the cultivation and essence of their lives.
In value, such a pearl was comparable to a Nascent Soul cultivator’s Nascent Soul. That Ancestor Honghe had offered such a treasure was truly astonishing. No wonder his disciple, presenting it on his master’s behalf, looked so proud.
The Perfected Ones and outstanding disciples present could all appreciate the pearl’s worth. Some younger or less composed cultivators could not suppress their wonder and envy.
Venerable Jade Maiden laughed softly upon her high seat. The pearl and its jade casket instantly rose into the air together and vanished into the depths of the steps, as though swallowed by layers of mist.
Mu Wuxin said unhurriedly, “Ancestor Honghe has been thoughtful. I accept his gift.” A streak of golden light descended directly into the Golden Core cultivator’s brow. “Here is a middle-grade Earth-tier fist technique that I obtained while slaying demons in my earlier years. Consider it a meeting gift for your disciple.”
The Golden Core cultivator was beside himself with delight and hastily bowed. “Many thanks, Estate Mistress! Many thanks!” Only then did he withdraw.
Ancestor Honghe himself laughed heartily, rose and bowed slightly to Mu Wuxin to show his respect.
Rogue cultivators also needed to pass down their teachings. Only after gathering enough disciples might they establish schools of their own. And such an ambition absolutely required superior cultivation methods.
Why else would a dignified Nascent Soul Ancestor rush to congratulate someone on her birthday, even risking his life against a demon clam of equivalent strength to obtain an appropriate gift? He had done it for the highest-quality techniques normally found only in famous, powerful sects!
Mu Wuxin was clearly pleased with the pearl and had generously reciprocated with a middle-grade Earth-tier fist technique, satisfying Ancestor Honghe’s wish beyond measure.
She had not merely earned his gratitude. Before all those sect disciples, she had also demonstrated Ruyi Immortal Estate’s resources and might!
Many rogue cultivators were eager to follow Honghe’s example.
The ten-thousandth birthday of a third-grade sect’s leader was a great occasion. And rogue cultivators who had reached Nascent Soul without a sect’s support had naturally accumulated a few excellent treasures over the years.
In ordinary circumstances, even if these unaffiliated cultivators sold their treasures, they might not obtain what they truly wanted in exchange. But presenting them as birthday gifts could yield better rewards.
Soon several more Nascent Soul Ancestors sent disciples forward with gifts: ten-thousand-year jade marrow, thousand-year stone milk, a demon crystal from an Asura Heavenly Demon, and countless other rarities.
Among them, the most precious was a wisp of Fire in the Air, contained within a thousand-year cold-jade casket. It was flawlessly pure, except for a faint white thread at the very center of its flame.
As the cultivators watched it burn quietly inside the cold jade, they saw that every passing moment scorched and melted the casket, visibly thinning its walls.
Many young cultivators had their horizons broadened at once.
A true fire born of heaven and earth was extraordinary indeed. To preserve even this single wisp, the Nascent Soul Ancestor who obtained it must have tried innumerable methods and expended many precious materials.
Just as expected, Mu Wuxin was particularly taken with the Fire in the Air. After accepting it, she bestowed another Earth-tier technique. Although the other rogue cultivators’ gifts were less valuable than those offered by these two ancestors, they too received generous rewards and were very satisfied.
Once the Nascent Soul Ancestors had offered their gifts, it was the turn of the many sect disciples.
These Golden Core Perfected Ones had no choice but to sit below the Nascent Soul Ancestors because their strength was inferior. Yet by virtue of their own standing, while they would not casually provoke those ancestors, they did not necessarily fear them either.
Likewise, the ancestors wished to preserve their legacies and had no reason to antagonize disciples of great sects. When they encountered particularly outstanding young people, they might even send their disciples to establish contact. If the approach was welcomed, the two parties might become sworn brothers or friends despite the difference in age.
The Eastern Region was vast, with innumerable sects, rich in talent and crowded with prodigious geniuses.
The Wuling Immortal Sect was a second-grade sect, among the foremost of the entire Qingyun Great World. Perhaps a handful of other second-grade sects in other regions could rival it, but every remaining school stood below it.
Indeed, it was the only second-grade sect in the Eastern Region.
Accordingly, the time had come for the Wuling Immortal Sect delegation to present its birthday gift.
Naturally, that gift was in the hands of their leader, Yun Lie.
Yun Lie rose and walked unhurriedly toward the foot of the steps.
The other disciples remained seated, all watching him.
Xu Ziqing also watched intently. He was genuinely curious, for it seemed that apart from his senior brother, no one knew what the gift actually was.
Yun Lie raised his hand slightly, and something appeared above the palace floor.
In an instant, red light blotted out the sky.