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nTranslator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

nThe stone door of the manor cave was closed after the Drifter left.

nGazing at the tightly closed stone door, Tong Yan fell silent. He realized that the person who sat across from him and played the Go pieces was none other than the Immortal Taiping.

nIn this case, losing a game was not something he couldn’t tolerate; but was this kid going to leave the hermit peaks?

nEven if the Immortal Taiping knew other secret passages of the hermit peaks, it was impossible for the Immortal Liu Ci and Jing Jiu not to take some precautions during the space of three hundred years.

nHe didn’t even know how he had left the hermit peaks when Jing Jiu led him out. By the time he opened his eyes, he was already on Tianguang Peak; after which he went to the Underworld.

nYet, it wasn’t the thing he needed to ponder; so he closed his eyes and started recovering his injury.

nHis injury was rather severe; he couldn’t stand up that quickly. As such, he had no way to open the stone door and inform Jing Jiu.

nThe Drifter didn’t leave the hermit peaks. He went to another peak.

nThe wild flowers were blooming on that peak, and the vines looked like hundreds of tiny waterfalls on the cliff, the arrangements of which were regulated and meaningful.

nIn the deep end of the vines and wild flowers hid an unnoticeable manor cave. It was here that Fang Jingtian had stayed behind death doors for over nine years.

nThe Drifter took out the bamboo flute and played soundless music.

nThe wild flowers and vines were swaying, and the invisible raindrops started falling down from the sky.

nThe bamboo flute began to quiver slightly and generate many branches as if being nurtured by the invisible rain.

nThe braches on the bamboo flute continued growing; the green leaves came out from the branches and a few flower buds emerged, which happened to be seven in total.

n…

n…

nThe Drifter was more than ten years old, but he looked like a kid of five or six years because people in the Underworld were usually smaller in size.

nHaving done what the Immortal Taiping asked him to do, the Drifter felt a bit nervous and tired. He sighed instinctively like a little adult.

nLike Tong Yan thought, it was quite difficult for the Drifter to leave the hermit peaks. He wasn’t sure if the arrangement by the Immortal was still workable.

nThe Drifter left the hermit peaks with this worried thought. He dodged the formation at a place perilously, and then entered the Sword Jail.

nThe passages in the Sword Jail were rather dark and gloomy. The devil men of the Underworld in the cells on both sides rushed to the doors after sensing his energy, making a melancholy sound.

nThough the sound was melancholy, the emotion expressed was rather cheerful.

nThe Drifter waved his right hand, greeting the prisoners in the cells like an emperor; but he didn’t attempt to dismantle the forbidden formations of the cells.

nHe didn’t have the ability to do so, and moreover, he didn’t want to anger that important person.

n“This little emperor greets the Master Night Howler.”

nThe Drifter glided to the midair effortlessly and hovered in front of the eyes of the Dead Dog. He then pressed his hands together to salute the Dead Dog in the most reverential manner.

nThe Dead Dog opened his eyes slowly, and gazed at him quietly, giving no response.

nTong Yan had brought that case to the hermit peaks.

nThe ghost came out from the case, but Tong Yan was still in the hermit peaks; it was obvious that something was out of place.

nThe Dead Dog was quite knowledgeable about the Underworld; so he was not very cautious about them. It was because he believed that he could easily gobble them up regardless of how formidable those devil men were.

n“You can’t eat me.”

nThe Drifter added in a pitiful manner, “I’m the future Underworld emperor. I’ll be responsible for the peace hoped for by the two immortals, and I’m also just an innocent letter!”

nThe Dead Dog closed his eyes, paying no more attention to him.

nThe Drifter followed the sunlight as he looked up, and he knew it was not the time to leave yet. He had to wait until Yuan Qijing left the place.

nThinking of the task he had to accomplish, an indignant expression showed on his face. Though he didn’t want to do it, he couldn’t afford to offend any one of them.

n…

n…

nThe representatives of all the Cultivation sects had arrived.

nIt meant that all of those sects that were qualified to participate in the Grand Ceremony of inaugurating the sect master of Green Mountain had sent their representatives; and they all had a high status at their sects.

nIt was the Immortal Bai who represented the Center Sect; but she only came with Bai Zao, Xiang Wanshu and a few more young disciples.

nThe Young Zen Master of the Fruit Formation Temple came in person on his lotus sedan. Bu Qiuxiao came with Xi Yiyun and Liu Shisui. The Chief Nun of the Water-Moon Nunnery came with Zhen Tao. The Sect Master of the Hanging-Bell, Chen Xueqiao, came with Sese. The Sect Master of the Great Marsh came with his chief commander. The Sect Master of the Mirror Sect came with Que Niang. The Sect Master of the Kunlun came with hatred in his heart. The representatives of the imperial court were State Duke He and the chief commander of the Pure Heaven Bureau, Zhang Yiai.

nUnder normal circumstances, receiving the representatives of various sects was the duty of Xilai Peak; but the peak master of Xilai, Fang Jingtian, was staying behind death doors in the hermit peaks, so the duty had to be taken by somebody else.

nThe peak master of Shangde, Yuan Qijing, was too old, and his status was also too high for the job. The peak master of Shiyue, the Immortal Guangyuan, was at the distant West Ocean, and he wouldn’t come back for the ceremony. The peak master of Qingrong, Nan Wang was unwilling to take care of such uninteresting affairs. The peak master of Yunxing, Fu Wang, felt he had lost face a few years ago, so he was too embarrassed to receive others. As a result, it was the peak master of Bihu, Chen Youtian, led Guo Nanshan and the disciples of Liangwang fulfilling the duty of receiving the guests.

nUndoubtedly, this was the most important event that had taken place in the Cultivation circle in the last several hundred years; it was even more important than the Dao Competition hosted by the Center Sect some years earlier to celebrate the founding of their sect thirty thousand years ago.

nProtected by the Great Formation of Green Mountain, the weather was fairly desirable. The swordsmen of various sects, sitting among the platforms shrouded in the clouds, looked like fairy immortals.

nThe picturesque sceneries of Tianguang Peak were in the sight of every onlooker.

nSeeing the stone turtle supporting the stone monument on the top of Tianguang Peak, those sect masters and those who knew the identity of the turtle displayed a somber expression.

nThere was a small hut behind the stone monument, where there was an empty chair.

nDozens of gazes were fixed on the chair. Though they had different emotions when looking at the chair, their expressions were all complicated.

nThey heard that Jing Jiu had broken through the Sea State several years ago and became the person who had improved the fastest in Cultivation throughout the history. Such a pace of Cultivation had neither been witnessed nor recorded before.

nMany important figures in the Cultivation circle, including Bu Qiuxiao, had failed to figure out how Jing Jiu could improve so quickly in Cultivation.

nIn comparison to Jing Jiu, those so-called geniuses were no different from regular disciples.

nAnd soon some of them remembered that Zhuo Rusui and Zhao Layue had already reached the upper state of the Free Travel and were on the verge of breaking through the Sea State.

nIt was all rather bizarre. How did the Green Mountain Sect achieve such an extraordinary feat?

n“It’s the remaining spirits of the Immortal Jing Yang.”

nBu Qiuxiao was clearer than anybody else about this matter. He shot Liu Shisui a glance, as he thought Shisui was one of the benefiters.

nA small green curtain sedan came over out of the distance, and landed by the Chief Nun of the Water-Moon Nunnery.

nMany people were aware that this was the holy treasure of the Great Grandmaster of the Water-Moon Nunnery, feeling bewildered, as they wondered why they didn’t come with her.

nBefore they could think more about the matter, Yuan Qijing arrived on the top of Tianguang Peak on his Three-Foot Sword along with some light snowflakes. Nan Wang arrived soon after.

nAll the people present greeted each other. And they were aware that the Grand Ceremony of inaugurating the sect master of Green Mountain would start soon.

nThe Chief Nun of the Water-Moon Nunnery took a look at the small green curtain sedan, furrowing her eyebrows slightly.

nShe still looked like a young woman though she had a high Cultivation state. A peach flower petal was attached to the middle of her two pretty eyebrows; it looked wonderful even though the space between her brows was a bit too wide.

nAs she furrowed her brows, the peach flower petal quivered slightly, exuding a fresh energy; she had actually employed the Heaven-Human Connection soundlessly, undetected.

nThe Chief Nun of the Water-Moon Nunnery felt something was out of place, but she couldn’t pinpoint the problem after looking around.

nThere were at least over a thousand Cultivation practitioners in the vicinity of Tianguang Peak; but the whole area was noiseless, and the atmosphere was rather solemn.

nIt was the Grand Ceremony of inaugurating the sect master of Green Mountain, which was paid a great deal of attention by a great many people. To say nothing of those devil men of the deviant sects, the Center Sect didn’t even dare make a fuss on such an occasion.

nIf something sinister happened, it would be the internal issue of Green Mountain…The thought of the Chief Nun was interrupted by a sword sound, and couldn’t resume any longer.

nThe sword sound was loud and crisp, echoing among heaven and earth, as well as in everybody’s head.

nIt sounded like a dew falling down from the edge of a huge lotus leaf a few miles high and breaking into powder after landing on a precious white jade.

nJing Jiu arrived on the peak top along with this sword sound. Then he walked toward that chair.

nZhao Layue, Gu Qing and Yuan Qü were watching this scene nearby.

nCountless others were watching the event unfold.

n…

n…

nThe sunlight streamed down from the bottom of Shangde Peak and landed on the Dead Dog along with the sword sound.

nIn the meantime, he had also heard another sound.

nIt was the sound of flowers blossoming; the flowers were the plum flowers, and there were seven of them exactly.

nThe Dead Dog shot the Drifter a glance.

nThe Drifter had a pale face.

nThe Dead Dog didn’t pay any attention to him, and walked to the deep end of the Sword Jail noiselessly, like a dark cloud.

nThe Drifter knew that he had finally passed the barrier. He rubbed his small face in fear, and glided upward.

nThe sceneries in the hermit peaks were more wonderful than the outside world, regardless of whether it was the blue sky, the white clouds or the greenish cliffs here. However, it had been rare for such sceneries and blooming flowers to come into view.

nThe Dead Dog looked at the green peak in front of him and the small flowers throughout the fields and hills; soon he discovered that bamboo flute.

nThis bamboo flute wasn’t its original appearance anymore. It had many braches and seven plum flowers, all of which were blooming vigorously.

nThe stone door of the manor cave in the peak was opened along with a squeaking sound. The vines covering the door broke into pieces instantly, and fell onto the ground helplessly.

nThe two silvery eyebrows ruffling with the gentle wind looked like two milky ways in the night sky. Fang Jingtian came out from behind closed doors.

nHe looked normal with his energy under control and the expression nonchalant in his eyes; but when he stepped forward, a sword light emerged out of his body, shooting up to an elevation of several miles in the sky.

nThis indicated the condition of the Heavenly Arrival State!

nUnless the Cultivation practitioners employed a powerful formation or magic treasure to insulate themselves from the outside world, they would cause a response from heaven and earth when they entered the Heavenly Arrival State. Why had nothing happened to Fang Jingtian?

nThis was something hard to understand. Yet, the Dead Dog displayed a composed expression in his eyes, indicating that he knew the reason for such an abnormality.

nFang Jingtian came before the bamboo flute after crossing the field full of wild flowers, and gazed quietly at the flowers on it for a while.

nThe seven plum flowers became invisible, and the branches and leaves had all vanished after turning into powders. The bamboo flute looked the same as it had been before.

nHe picked up the bamboo flute and played a few tunes casually. Fang Jingtian discovered that he was not good at it, and smiled faintly while shaking his head. Then, he bowed to the Dead Dog calmly.

nAn appreciative expression showed in the Dead Dog’s eyes.

nAfter the battle of the West Ocean, Fang Jingtian was sent to the hermit peaks by Guan Qijing as punishment, and he was not allowed to get out of the hermit peaks unless he broke through the Heavenly Arrival State.

nThe most hopeful candidates for breaking through the Heavenly Arrival State at the Green Mountain Sect were Fang Jingtian and the Immortal Guangyuan, but it was not an easy goal to achieve

nIn the history of the Cultivation circle, innumerable practitioners who had a chance of breaking through the Heavenly Arrival State had fallen at this barrier.

nThe proof for it was those dried-up corpses in the hermit peaks.

nIn a sense, what Fang Jingtian had faced was the possibility of death.

nSuch a pressure could either help the Cultivation practitioners try harder or become a mental barrier for them.

nUnexpectedly, he had broken through the death doors in nine years and entered the Heavenly Arrival State!

n“It’s unfair!”

nAn aged and resentful voice burst out from one of the peaks: “If Taiping hadn’t helped you, it would have been impossible for a slow person like you to enter the state before me. I’m not convinced!”

nFang Jingtian couldn’t tell who and from which peak the speaker was, furrowing his brows slightly.

nThe Dead Dog knew the speaker was a Cultivation practitioner on Mochen Peak. He was regarded as a genius in sword work and had reached the upper state of the Broken

nSea after cultivating for only two hundred years.

nDuring the internal turmoil on Green Mountain six hundred years ago, Mochen Peak was purged with a bloodbath; but his person surrendered fast enough. The Immortal Taiping thought he was a talented swordsman and let him cultivate behind closed doors in the hermit peaks.

nUnfortunately, he still hadn’t broken through the barrier after so many years.

nThe aged, resentful and hateful voice didn’t ring out again.

nThe Dead Dog came before that peak, opened the stone door of the manor cave, and found that the person was dead already.

nSeeing his skinny body and horrible twisted face, the Dead Dog didn’t show any sympathy and pity in his indifferent eyes.

nHe picked up the skinny corpse with his mouth, leaping up into the air. As he came to the front of a remote mountain among the hermit peaks, he laid it in a grotto the size of a shrine.

nNext, the Dead Dog inhaled deeply.

nThe sword light illuminated the hill of corpses.

nA flying sword of high state flew out from amid the corpses.

nThe sword landed in the ear of the Dead Dog, which looked like a piece of hair.

nThe Dead Dog paid more attention to Fang Jingtian who was departing.

nIt was because Yuan Qijing instructed that Fang Jingtian would leave the hermit peaks as long as he could break through the Heavenly Arrival State.

nAs for whether there would be an internal unrest on Green Mountain…it was the matter between those two brothers. The Dead Dog decided not to get involved in it this time.

nAs the Dead Dog was bringing the corpse to the grotto, Fang Jingtian had already arrived in the Sword Jail.

nHe saw the cell at the end of the narrow and long passageway again, but he experienced different feelings this time.

nHis Master had been locked up by them here. Who was locked in that cell now?

nHe had more things to take care of today; so he didn’t dwell on the issue for too long. He walked forward along the dark and gloomy passage for a while; he halted his steps when he came before a cell.

nHe took out the bamboo flute. “Grandmaster, let’s go,” said Fang Jingtian while looking at the tightly closed stone door.

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