Misty Illusion Secret Realm.
Above the silent and lofty sky, within the layers of colorful clouds and purple mist, there lies a magnificent and majestic palace, stretching for millions of miles. Immortal birds, divine beasts, and celestial maidens can be seen wandering within.
On the square outside a grand hall, numerous solemn and dignified immortal officials stood silently. The celestial envoys, Purple Brilliance and Ling Xi, were among them, positioned towards the front.
Inside the grand hall, a purple mist rose, and dozens of large thrones were arranged in a circular pattern. Each throne was occupied by a figure in regal attire, exuding a majestic and imposing presence, bathed in radiant light, their features indistinct, yet emanating a suffocating pressure.
A voice echoed in the hall, “The temporal gate has been closed for over three months, and all the expenditure and income lists have been verified. The losses we’ve incurred this time… are indeed very significant!”
“To what extent?” another figure asked.
“To put it this way, the total amount of various expenditures from the past thousands of openings of the temporal gate does not compare to the losses incurred this time. Although we harvested more luck from the Great Void this time than in previous occasions, it pales in comparison to the losses.”
A sudden silence fell over the surroundings. This unbelievable result clearly caught all the dignitaries present off guard. After all, from the ancient times to the present, such a situation had never occurred.
“Why is this happening?”
A pleasant voice inquired, “Could it be that some unknown changes have occurred in this world? Or… is it a conspiracy by the cultivators from the Great Void? It’s strange, their overall strength is not as great as before, and they don’t have the ability to cause trouble.”
Another woman chimed in, “That’s right. After several emperors joined forces to adjust the laws of this world, no outsider can possibly exert a strength surpassing the peak of Ascending to Immortality. Most resources cannot be taken out of this world. Unless they obediently follow the rules we’ve set, they simply cannot overstep their bounds.”
In the eyes of the senior members of the Heavenly Human Clan, only the cultivators from the Great Void during the ancient times before the great calamity could be considered powerful. Even then, they were still unable to contend with them in the Misty Illusion Secret Realm, and could only act within the permissible range of the rules. Now, it was even more so.
A deep and thick voice sounded, “After a detailed investigation with the Great Thousand Celestial Mirror, it can be basically confirmed that an unidentified force of cultivators has been plundering resources on the lower realm on a large scale. Countless giant spirit stones and spirit crystal veins have been emptied, as well as many extremely rare and precious spirit mines, spirit beasts, and divine medicines.”
“They… must have come prepared. This is a premeditated and organized large-scale plunder, with the goal of seizing the abundant cultivation resources in this world.”
A woman in a feathered robe exclaimed in surprise, “But without the permission of the emperors, these resources cannot be taken out through the temporal gate. Even the most powerful among them cannot break free from the laws of this world. After the temporal gate closes, these resources will still remain in this world. What’s the point of their actions?”
The scene fell silent for a moment. Then, a somewhat cold voice spoke, “What else could it be? Of course, those cultivators have repeatedly attempted and found a way to break free from the laws of this world, which is why they dare to plunder resources so wantonly and steal the luck that belongs to our Heavenly Human Clan.”
The surroundings suddenly became deathly silent, and a destructive pressure brewed in the air. All the dignitaries present were shocked by this news, and a raging fury surged within them.
They were the people of the heavenly realm, the noble and lofty Heavenly Human Clan, and they were by no means comparable to the mortal cultivators from the Great Void. From ancient times to the present, it had always been their prerogative to harvest the cultivators from outside. How could those cultivators turn around and fleece the Heavenly Human Clan for their own gain?
This was simply outrageous!
“Who could have done this?”
After a long pause, a cold voice rang out, “Daring to act recklessly on our Heavenly Human Clan’s territory, do they want to be annihilated?”
Someone spoke up, “The problem definitely lies with those outside cultivators. It’s just not clear at the moment whether it’s the work of a certain force or a powerful individual, or if all the cultivators are involved! However, according to the reports from our undercover agents among those cultivators, they did not exhibit any abnormal behavior during the opening of the temporal gate this time.”
The figure sitting in the center moved slightly, “Oh? Then it can be basically confirmed that this matter should be the work of a certain person or a force of a certain Dao Lineage. As long as we thoroughly investigate all the renowned Supreme Dao Lineages and hidden aristocratic families in the Great Void, it won’t be difficult to find the answer.”
The scene fell silent once again, and the dignitaries began to communicate with their subordinates outside using secret methods to understand the situation.
“Could it be the Calamity Fate Palace?”
A woman asked, “They are one of the oldest and most powerful forces in the Great Void, and they have some means. If they have figured out a way to violate the laws of this world, I wouldn’t be too surprised.”
Many dignitaries nodded in agreement. In the past, the Calamity Fate Palace had cooperated with the senior members of the Heavenly Human Clan and had actually played the role of an accomplice, helping the Heavenly Human Clan harvest the cultivators from the Great Void to plunder their luck. For this, they had gained quite a few additional benefits, and they also had the most knowledge about the Heavenly Human Clan. It was entirely possible for them to devise some special means to scheme against the Heavenly Human Clan.A man with a gloomy aura coldly said, “If it’s really their doing, we can’t let it go. We must exterminate them! Hmph! They are just a group of lowly servants working for us, yet they dare to think they can overturn the heavens?”
Someone hesitated and said, “We can’t be completely sure about this at the moment, right? It might be someone else? Furthermore, our powerful beings from the Heavenly Human Clan will also be restricted by the laws of that side’s world when entering the Great Void. We can’t freely exert our full power, so we need to carefully consider the extermination.”
Even though the Great Void has suffered multiple heavy blows and its overall strength is not as good as before, it still has the advantage of being on home ground. The remnants of the Heavenly Human Clan may not be able to act recklessly here.
If this matter is mishandled and triggers a strong backlash from the various Supreme Dao Lineages of the Great Void, uniting to counter the remnants of the Heavenly Human Clan, it will also be quite troublesome for them.
The big shots continued to discuss for a while, gradually dividing into two factions: those who agreed to thoroughly investigate and launch an expedition to the Great Void, and those who advocated negotiating with the Great Void for a peaceful resolution.
Since they couldn’t reach a consensus, the voice sitting in the middle finally said, “Since we can’t reach a conclusion here, let’s report this matter to a few Emperors and ask them to make the decision!”
Everyone nodded one after another. It’s not a small matter for the powerful beings of the Heavenly Human Clan to enter the Great Void on a large scale. It also requires the approval of the Emperors, so this is the wisest choice.
…
The Main Altar of Cloud Dream Heavenly Palace.
Peak of the Royal Dao, back mountain.
In a pavilion, Qing Muling had a jade slip spread out in front of him and was using his divine sense as a pen to write quickly:
“…The feeling of being caught red-handed by my senior sisters is really unpleasant. I never knew what it felt like to be socially dead before, but now I finally understand. But I didn’t do anything serious, I just made a pair of special stockings and asked Senior Sister Luo Huan to wear them for me to see. It’s not a big deal, but their reaction was way too exaggerated.”
“The consequence of the stocking incident was that my senior sisters joined forces to train me ruthlessly all night, and threatened that if I dared to resist, they would report this matter to our Master. Forget it, I won’t argue with them.”
“Fortunately, it was just a pair of stockings. I had prepared more good things, but I didn’t have a chance to show them to Senior Sister Luo Huan. For example, a hollow lace bra, strapless, transparent, leopard print, and other exciting styles. It’s a good thing I didn’t show them, otherwise it wouldn’t just be social death this time, but I would have been in big trouble.”
“Thinking about it carefully, aren’t my senior sisters being a bit too much? It seems like I need to find a way to teach them a lesson, otherwise if they continue to be so domineering, acting like queens, if we really become Dao companions in the future, I’ll be oppressed by them every day. This is unacceptable!”
“And since then, Senior Sister Luo Huan has brought more materials and has come to ask me for stockings every now and then, wanting various styles. At first, I didn’t understand, until last night when we were soaking in the hot spring, several senior sisters were all wearing stockings on their smooth and fair thighs. I finally understood what was going on. Hehe, women… always so indirect! They can’t ask for it themselves, so they let Senior Sister Luo Huan do it.”
“If they don’t resist so much, should I come up with some more fun things in the future? Like a collar, a blood droplet, a fox tail, cat ear bells, and so on. Well, let’s start with Senior Sister Luo Huan.”
“If one day, I can get our Master to accept these things, that would be great… cough, stop, I can’t have such dangerous thoughts, otherwise someone will really die!”
After a while, Qing Muling finally finished writing, looked around, then checked the content again, nodding in satisfaction. He added a sentence at the end:
“Although serious people don’t write diaries, I think I’m still a serious person, right? After all, I didn’t do anything to my senior sisters, I just pursued art and beauty!”
“Junior Brother…”
Accompanied by a charming voice, a streak of light swiftly approached from a distance and turned into the figure of Qi Yalan.
“Yalan, is there something you need? It doesn’t seem like it’s time for sword practice yet?”
Qing Muling stood up calmly and asked, putting the jade slip into his storage bracelet.
Qi Yalan’s keen eyes didn’t miss his small movement. “What are you hiding?”
“Oh, nothing, just some insights on cultivation.”
“Is that so? I don’t believe it, let me see!”
Qi Yalan reached out her fair and slender hand in front of him.
“No, I won’t give it to you!”
Qing Muling responded stubbornly.
“You really won’t give it to me?”
Qi Yalan narrowed her beautiful eyes, and there was a hint of danger in her gaze. “It seems like there’s definitely something fishy!”
Qing Muling looked calm. “If you dare to snatch it, I will sever ties with you!”
“Sever ties?”
“Yes, I must sever ties!”
Qing Muling looked at her candidly.
“…”
Qi Yalan gazed deeply at the handsome young man in front of her for a moment, then sighed deeply. “Junior Brother, do you feel that our senior sisters are being too harsh on you, to the point where you’re starting to feel a bit resentful?”
Qing Muling pursed his lips and remained silent.
Qi Yalan walked up gracefully, extended her foot onto a nearby stone stool, and slowly lifted the exquisite and gorgeous skirt.
As the skirt rose slowly, it revealed the round and slender legs, wrapped in delicate and beautiful thigh-high black stockings with lace patterns, the alluring curves making one’s heart race.Her face was coldly enchanting and alluring, exuding a powerful aura that seemed to ward off strangers, yet she struck such a provocative pose that no man of sound body and mind could withstand such a cruel, inhuman test.
“Does it look good?”
The sweet, sultry voice of the Third Senior Sister rang in his ears, soul-melting and bone-eroding.
“Very nice.”
Qing Muling nodded, thinking to himself that it would be even better if he could capture this moment with a Shadow Recording Jade Charm. Of course, that wasn’t possible now, but there was no rush; he could slowly persuade his senior sister later.
Qi Yalan smiled softly, her jade hands gently cradling his face: “You understand the feelings your senior sisters have for you. The reason they act that way is partly because you seem to favor some over others. If you really… really like that sort of thing, why not tell us directly instead of going to Senior Sister Luo Huan?”
“From now on, if you like these little games, just… just tell Lan Sister.”
Qing Muling saw no reason to refuse: “Alright.”
Qi Yalan breathed a sigh of relief in her heart. She had been truly afraid that these matters would create a rift between her and her Junior Brother, making it difficult to maintain a good relationship in the future.
After all, she was destined to cultivate together with him, to entrust her life to this man. What was this little issue in the grand scheme of things?
“Alright, let’s go,”
Qi Yalan took Qing Muling’s arm, wrapping it around her waist: “The elders have decided to retrieve the lost sect treasure, the Li Huang Star Cloud Tower. Today is the day of action, so the Sect Master asked me to bring you along for the departure.”
“I see.”
Qing Muling understood. The Li Huang Star Cloud Tower was a first-class weapon of slaughter, ranking within the top hundred of the innate supreme treasures in The Great Void, and it was powerful enough to be listed in the top ten. It was one of the heavy chips used by Cloud Dream Heavenly Palace to defend the status of the Supreme Dao Lineage.
Unfortunately, during the calamity ten thousand years ago, this treasure was lost in a perilous and forbidden area of The Great Void. It was only recently that an elder of the sect, by a stroke of luck, traced its whereabouts.
The overjoyed Grand Elders had initially planned to set out immediately to retrieve it, but considering the great risks and Qing Muling’s low cultivation level at the time, the plan was temporarily shelved.
Now, with the closure of the Misty Illusion Secret Realm and the temporary stabilization of the surrounding situation, along with the improvement of Qing Muling’s cultivation and his increasingly powerful destiny, Sect Master Mu Yinghua felt it was time to act.
－－－－－－Author’s Note－－－－－－
Although it’s just one update, the word count hasn’t decreased, right?