Stepping into the Sect

Her eyes widened slightly. If she hadn't seen this with her own eyes, she would never have been able to imagine it. If the cultivation world was already like this, what must the actual Divine Realm look like?

“Let's go. We'll head down first,” Fu Yao said to Jiang Lu.

“This is the sacred ground of the immortal gate. All disciples can only ride magic treasures in front of the gate. Only after our identities are verified can we proceed inside.”

As she spoke, they walked beneath the immortal gate. The other disciples hung their identity tokens from their waists, and Fu Yao took Jiang Lu's hand.

Jiang Lu felt as though she had passed through a barrier, and suddenly she was inside the sect.

“This is an identity token. Sect disciples hang them from their waists so they can move about. Different disciples have access to different areas. If you cannot enter a place even with a token, do not force your way in.”

Jiang Lu nodded to show she understood.

“Hmph—”

Hearing a soft scoff from behind, Jiang Lu felt somewhat helpless. She hadn't provoked Liu Qingqing, had she?

Upon entering, Liu Qingqing did not follow them any further. Instead, she walked off in another direction. After speaking to Fu Yao, the other disciples also departed toward another destination.

Two long cries rang out as two spiritual cranes landed in front of them.

Fu Yao patted their heads and fed each of them some spiritual food. They lowered their necks and nudged her palm.

Then, she leapt onto the back of one crane.

Seeing this, Jiang Lu followed Fu Yao's example and jumped onto the other spiritual crane.

The spiritual crane let out a long cry and soared into the sky. A barrier formed around its body, ensuring the cultivator on its back would not be affected by the wind currents and fall off.

The entire immortal gate was built against a ten-thousand-zhang-tall divine mountain. The mountain soared straight up, piercing through layers of clouds to connect with the vast heavens.

From the back of the spiritual crane, Jiang Lu gazed at the various peaks nestled among the clouds.

There was no ordinary soil or rock in these mountains; they were composed entirely of warm, translucent immortal jade and gilded rock strata. Nurtured by spiritual energy for ten thousand years, the mountain stones naturally emitted a lustrous white glow, faintly enveloped in an eternal immortal charm.

A thousand-step jade staircase stretched out from beneath the sea of clouds, leading up layer by layer to the sect's main hall. On both sides of the steps were engraved immortal runes and totems from the ancient primordial era—dragons and phoenixes weaving through clouds, and qilin bearing auspicious omens. The carvings were deep and ancient, with each line flowing with a faint, clear light.

The sea of clouds surged around the mountainsides, half-shrouding the entire sect like a misty illusion.

The wisps of cloud, saturated with the dense spiritual energy of the mountains, transformed into soft spiritual clouds that never dissipated. They flowed slowly, breathing out a dense, rosy mist.

A gentle spiritual breeze blew through the mountains, whipping up a blanket of immortal mist wherever it passed. The mist was crisp and sweet; inhaling it cleared the mind and washed away all worldly impurities.

The sect's heartland stretched for tens of millions of zhang, with palaces and halls scattered across the spiritual peaks. Well-spaced and strictly laid out, the architecture secretly incorporated the ancient Cosmic Star Array.

The main hall, the Lingxiao Qinghe Hall, towered majestically on the highest peak at the center of the immortal vein. Built from ten-thousand-year-old warm jade and stellar fine gold, its multi-tiered eaves and upturned corners stretched into the air. The carved window frames were inlaid with vast expanses of colored glaze. When the sunlight fell upon it, the entire hall shimmered with brilliant light, devoid of any worldly vulgarity, leaving only solemn majesty.

Atop the hall's roof stood nine jade statues of ancient divine beasts, suppressing evil from all directions and guarding the sect's foundation. An ancient Dao charm lingered around them.

The side halls, pavilions, quiet rooms, elixir platforms, and sword arenas on either side were built along the mountain, extending upward tier by tier. Thousands of buildings stood in a sprawling array, stretching as far as the eye could see.

All the buildings were covered in emerald immortal tiles that would not fade for thousands of years. Crystalline immortal dew clung to the tiles year-round, and at dawn and dusk, wisps of white mist would rise, creating an ethereal and transcendent atmosphere.

Exotic flowers and rare herbs grew everywhere, filling the air with fragrance. Blooming endlessly through all four seasons, the various spiritual grasses emitted their own light and a dense, rich immortal scent that drifted with the wind across the entire sect.

Ancient pines and green cypresses took root in the jade rocks, their trunks sturdy and straight, their needles a deep green hung with dew. These ancient trees all possessed spirit, with wisps of spiritual energy lingering among their branches. Some thousand-year-old trees had already developed intelligence, their leaves swaying gently with a natural, carefree Dao charm.

Countless floating spiritual peaks dotted the sea of clouds. These floating immortal mountains were covered in immortal herbs and spiritual trees. Immortal waterfalls cascaded down from the summits of the floating mountains, plunging thousands of zhang. The falling water did not splash with worldly dust, instead completely transforming into a sky of spiritual mist that nourished the sect's entire spiritual vein.

Faint Daoist sounds drifted through the mountains—sometimes the ethereal whistle of a breeze passing through the halls, sometimes the elegant gurgling of a spiritual spring, and occasionally the soft sounds of disciples chanting scriptures or practicing swordplay. The blend of movement and stillness felt peaceful and distant.

There was not a shred of hostility or clamor within the immortal gate. The heavy heritage accumulated over tens of millions of years was preserved in every blade of grass, every tree, every hall, and every pavilion. The immortal energy was vast and majestic, and the Dao charm was long and profound. It possessed both a grand, heaven-reaching presence and an ancient, quiet solemnity—truly a supreme sacred land, isolated from the mortal world, for cultivating the Dao.

Jiang Lu's heart suddenly grew peaceful. Was this the cultivation world in its golden age?

Abundant spiritual energy, countless resources!

Only under such conditions could a group of righteous cultivators be nurtured.

The spiritual cranes descended from the sea of clouds and landed before the main hall. Fu Yao and Jiang Lu jumped down from their backs.

The cranes then departed.

Seeing that Jiang Lu's expression was perfectly normal and that she stood before her as obediently as before, Fu Yao's heart softened, and her tone grew gentle.

“Let's go!”

Jiang Lu opened her large eyes and nodded, following behind her. She looked straight ahead without glancing around.

Fu Yao, who had been keeping her divine sense on Jiang Lu, nodded in satisfaction. The girl's temperament was quite good, and she found her pleasing to the eye. If they had met earlier, she could have at least become an honorary disciple of her master.

Now, it was a pity...

She then led Jiang Lu up the steps to the main hall.

“Disciple Fu Yao pays respects to Master.”

She bowed with clasped hands before the hall, speaking with a solemn expression.

Seeing this, Jiang Lu immediately bowed just like her. Although she didn't know why Fu Yao had brought her here, she knew this trip was auspicious, so she wasn't worried.

The doors of the main hall slowly creaked open, and a deep voice echoed from within:

“Enter.”

The two of them straightened up, lifted their skirts, and stepped into the hall. Sensing countless dense gazes falling upon her from all sides, warning bells rang in Jiang Lu's mind.

She couldn't help but swallow, her hands clenching tightly beneath her sleeves.

Inside her pouch, the few spiritual beasts huddled together, not daring to move.

After they took a few steps forward, those gazes finally dispersed.

Jiang Lu followed behind and stopped immediately when she saw Fu Yao stop.

“What is it?”

The deep voice spoke again.

“Master, during this trip, I encountered a promising talent and wish to keep her by my side to guide her. What do you think?”

Fu Yao raised her head and stepped aside, revealing Jiang Lu.

Aside from being a spell cultivator, her master was also a diviner.

Jiang Lu was not a conventional disciple. If Fu Yao wanted to keep her close and guide her, a divination would be required.

“Oh?”

The Sect Master of the Liuyun Sect sounded slightly intrigued. His disciple was exceptionally gifted and had extremely high standards. Could this cultivator possess some extraordinary trait?