Setting Off

The river of stars tilted as the moon set, and the first light of dawn shimmered.

Before daybreak, Xu Xian, who was already prepared, left the Wendao Sword Sect under the cover of moonlight. He headed toward the Demon Abyss without a word...

No one knew, except for Lu Yuan.

Later, when someone asked, Lu Yuan simply said he had gone into seclusion in the mountains.

On the path of cultivation, it was normal to go into seclusion after breaking through to core formation. Whether it lasted for a few years or decades, it was nothing unusual. Naturally, no one cared, and even Li Qingshan did not look into it further...

During the battle at the Demon Suppression Abyss, Xu Xian had single-handedly sent everyone below the eighth stage in the Great Desolation fleeing in terror. His sword sacrifice atop the city wall had been a stunning display.

He had already grown up and was fully capable of standing on his own.

First, he was the second-best master forger in the Wendao Sword Sect.

Second, he was a Pavilion Elder of the Wendao Sword Sect—not just in name, but in strength.

Third, it was no exaggeration to say he was invincible against anyone below the eighth stage, and a guaranteed trade against anyone above it.

Li Qingshan no longer needed to worry about him. He just had to make sure he didn't get scammed by the boy himself.

He would let him go and soar with the wind.

Besides, Li Qingshan was currently busy dealing with his talkative disciple every day and truly had no extra energy to spare.

Xu Xian's departure was sudden and discreet. None of the elders in the mountains knew. By the time the sky was bright, he was already nearly a thousand miles away from the sect.

This time, he did not choose to take a Merchant Hall Cloud Boat. Instead, he controlled his sword to pierce through the clouds. His speed was far beyond what a Cloud Boat could achieve.

In just one day, he had flown out of the Wendao Sword Sect's jurisdiction.

The mountains ahead began to level out, and the signs of human life below grew sparse.

To be safe, Xu Xian used his Pupil of Insight to mask his aura throughout the journey. After leaving the Wendao Sword Sect's territory, he even took out the Immortal King's Shroud and draped it over himself.

The blood-stained cloth covered him, and immortal spiritual light flickered.

He vanished, perfectly merging with his surroundings. Even the Little Book Spirit could no longer see him.

Shuer let out a small cry of surprise. "This really is a good item. Even I can't detect its presence..."

"Is it that strange?"

The Little Book Spirit explained, "It's not actually surprising. This shroud is stained with the blood of an Immortal King. When someone wears it, it merges into their body, and the aura of the Immortal King's blood is activated to hide their tracks. Though you're visible to the naked eye, divine sense can't penetrate it. It is the blood of an Immortal King, after all. Master, your current realm is too low. At most, I can only see through existences at the tribulation transcendence stage..."

Xu Xian was confused. Or rather, he had been curious since his conversation with Lu Yuan. If that was the case, why was the Little Book Spirit able to accurately capture Lu Yuan's presence back in Spirit Elixir City?

Hearing its explanation now, he asked the question that came to mind. "Then back then, how did you see through Lu Yuan?"

At the mention of this, the Little Book Spirit propped its elbow on one hand and rubbed its chin with the other, its tiny brow furrowed. "I'm wondering about that too."

Xu Xian's brow furrowed along with it.

The Little Book Spirit continued, "Hmm... I thought about it for a long time last night. There should only be one explanation."

Xu Xian listened intently.

As they flew, the Little Book Spirit turned its head to stare at Xu Xian, analyzing word by word. "The reason I caught a glimpse of Lu Yuan back then was because of the Innate Fortune leaking from his body. I expect that fellow has a massive background and incredibly potent fortune. Even the Immortal King's blood on the cloak wasn't enough to mask his aura."

"Yes... that must be it," the Little Book Spirit said, not forgetting to affirm itself.

Xu Xian wasn't surprised. It was no secret that Lu Yuan had a significant background. It was just that out of respect, he had never pried. Of course, even if he had asked, Lu Yuan might not have told him.

Secrets were like that. If they could be told, they wouldn't be secrets.

Just like the little fellow beside him—only he knew of its existence.

Putting aside everything else, just that fragment of the Three Inches of Time was something that even the Little Book Spirit, a spirit of the Sword Tower that had existed for an extremely long time, could not produce.

However... curiosity was only natural. Xu Xian had still privately speculated and analyzed the situation.

Why did Lu Yuan appear at the Demon Suppression Abyss? Why did he appear in Fanzhou?

Was he banished to the mortal world? Or was it a rebirth similar to his own? A transmigration?

He leaned toward the first option—Lu Yuan had been defeated by someone, his broken body fleeing to Fanzhou, only to awaken today after a long wait...

It was somewhat similar to Xiushe. Except he was definitely much more formidable than Xiushe.

Seeing that Xu Xian wasn't responding, the Little Book Spirit floated down to sit on his shoulder. Bored, it struck up a conversation. "By the way, Master, do you know what level of power an Immortal King is?"

Xu Xian snapped back to reality and curled his lip. "I don't know, but it sounds very impressive."

The Little Book Spirit didn't disagree. The night wind was strong, so it raised a hand to hold down its small hat and said with a smile, "For mortals cultivating toward immortality, there are nine stages in total. After the ninth stage, one becomes an immortal. In a lower plane like Fanzhou, the immortal stage is the end of the Dao. But in Cangming, the Immortal Realm is just the beginning."

Xu Xian didn't reply because those were empty words.

Mortal cultivators looking toward the immortal stage were like frogs at the bottom of a well looking up at the moon. If they ever truly became immortals and saw the Dao, it would be like a mayfly seeing the vast sky.

The Little Book Spirit didn't care and continued talking to itself.

Xu Xian didn't mind either, just listening along. The night was long and the journey was far; passing the time this way was quite pleasant...

"There are three major realms of the Great Dao."

"The Mortal Realm."

"The Immortal Realm."

"The Dao Realm."

"The nine stages of the Mortal Realm peak at tribulation transcendence."

"The six stages of the Immortal Realm begin with the Mortal Immortal."

"The first stage of the Immortal Realm: Mortal Immortal."

"The second stage of the Immortal Realm: Earth Immortal."

"The third stage of the Immortal Realm: Heaven Immortal."

"The fourth stage of the Immortal Realm: God Immortal."

"The fifth stage of the Immortal Realm: Immortal King."

"The sixth stage of the Immortal Realm: Immortal Emperor."

"As for the Dao Realm further above..."

The Little Book Spirit pursed its small lips and waved its hand, keeping him in suspense. "There's no point in mentioning it. That is a supreme realm only reached by the ancient gods. It's unclear how many stages there are, and no one knows if anyone has ever set foot there. In any case, no one could cultivate that high in the era I was born in, and there's likely even less of a chance now..."

"So, the Immortal King stage can be said to be very, very powerful. In the entire Cangming, or even the entire universe, they are as rare as phoenix feathers or unicorn horns. As for the Immortal Emperor, that's even more incredible..."

Xu Xian still didn't respond...

Nine stages of the Mortal Realm. Six stages of the Immortal Realm. Fifteen stages in total.

In the fragmented common knowledge he had inherited, there were similar records. In his mind, there were even rumors about what lay beyond the Immortal Emperor: the three realms of the Dao—one stage of the God Dao, two stages of the Heavenly Dao, and the Guidao Extreme Path.

However, the records were ambiguous and fantastical, making it hard to distinguish truth from fiction. Who was to say there wasn't another stage above the so-called Extreme Path?

But in the next second, the Little Book Spirit's shift in topic immediately piqued Xu Xian's interest.

"Is that true?"

The Little Book Spirit played it coy. "Of course. If the Sword Tower can be rebuilt, then a mere divine artifact shroud can naturally be restored as well. However, if you want it to fully recover, you have to wake up the spirit inside it..."

Xu Xian asked impatiently, "Do you have a way?"

The Little Book Spirit spread its small hands and said honestly, "Not for the moment."

Xu Xian: "..."

Xu Xian: "You may be dismissed!"