Chapter 4: Yunhai Brings Opportunity (4)
<Previous Chapter<Table of Contents>Next Chapter>
The Yunhai Small World is a realm close to the Grand World but with limited resources and thin spiritual energy. Its most notable feature is perhaps the river called Chang Hen River.
Chang Hen River is an extremely special place. Its source is said to be the immortal-level secret realm called Drunk Death Sea, occupied by the Yan family. Downstream lies the verdant river of the Ancient Forest Spirit Realm, extending far into distant territories. The entire basin is inhabited by dangerous beasts, creatures with cultivation levels at least as high as the Nascent Soul stage, but devoid of rationality and unable to transform into human form. In Bai Chunsheng’s words, their brains are not much bigger than walnuts.
Bai Chunsheng was puzzled upon seeing the Yunhai Small World because it was desolate to a miraculous extent. There was little land apart from the Chang Hen River, with swamps and wetlands dotted with redwood forests covering the rest. Due to the restrictions imposed by the Chang Hen River, hardly any humans or intelligent beasts could live here. Even though the Yunhai Small World was so close to the Grand World for thousands of years, it had failed to produce a cultivator qualified to ascend to the Grand World.
Why did Yan Yi come here?
“No way,” Bai Chunsheng thought. Although the Yunhai Small World hadn’t produced a cultivator capable of ascending for thousands of years, Yan Yi couldn’t possibly be the first in history.
This neatly explained why the entire cultivation world couldn’t uncover Yan Yi’s origins.
Lost in his thoughts, Bai Chunsheng concocted a reason for Yan Yi.
The Ten Thousand Demon Sect had its restrictions. Beasts with cultivation levels at least reaching the Mahayana stage were limited. Such major beasts wishing to leave the sect had to seek approval from the Grand Elder and be escorted by designated personnel to leave the White Bone Mountain Range.
With this entire process, it would take at least a month. Plus, several months ago, Bai Jianghan suddenly went into seclusion and hasn’t come out since. It might be a long time before she learns of this news.
Bai Chunsheng was usually one to follow the rules and dutifully submitted his application. After all, the Grand Elder was his grandmother, and if he didn’t obey, he’d get a beating. He wasn’t tough-skinned and resilient, he couldn’t stand pain.
But Bai Chunsheng couldn’t sleep at night; he tossed and turned, unable to rid his mind of Yan Yi, who had stirred up trouble for him. He hadn’t even figured out the taste of being the top genius, hadn’t even had the chance to show off, and yet he was already being chased away by this mysterious kid.
The more he thought, the angrier Bai Chunsheng became, wishing he could fly to the Yunhai Small World right now and give Yan Yi a good beating.
Bai Chunsheng flapped his wings and began to fantasize triumphantly. If he could be ruthless enough, he would even cast a slave curse on Yan Yi, forcing him to serve in the Starview Pavilion, waiting on him day and night, massaging his back, peeling grapes. Since he didn’t know what this kid looked like, whenever Bai Chunsheng mentally abused Yan Yi, he automatically imagined Yan Jingqiu’s face.
As he thought about it more and more, it felt as if he had already vented his anger.
Of course, that’s not enough.
Coincidentally, the celestial scroll placed on the side flipped through and displayed the latest information: “Yan Yi, this person is extremely wicked, devoid of humanity, and utterly insane. Fellow cultivators, please be extremely cautious of this madman.”
It was actually related to Yan Yi.
The leader of the three major sects of the Middle Realm, Tianqing Sect, officially issued a warrant for Yan Yi. However, they were still unwilling to disclose any information about what happened in the Lian Guang Secret Realm. At this point, Bai Chunsheng suspected that either Yan Yi had slapped them in the face, or they had more than just been slapped by him.
Although Bai Chunsheng knew that Yan Yi was currently in the Yunhai Small World, Yan Yi was still a living person with legs. Now that there were people chasing him all over the world, if he wasn’t stupid, he definitely wouldn’t stay in one place for too long. What if he managed to escape?
In that case, Bai Chunsheng got up and paced around the warm pool calmly. He wasn’t afraid that Yan Yi would be stronger than him now.
He wasn’t just an ordinary Dao Stage cultivator; Bai Chunsheng had confidence in that.
However, Yan Yi’s mysterious background made him unpredictable, which worried Bai Chunsheng. He feared that if this went on for too long, Yan Yi might progress rapidly under the pressure of being hunted by the major sects. Then, with the passage of time, he could become an insurmountable threat.
Even if the Dao Stage cultivators who fought against Yan Yi were incompetent, they were still cultivators who had crossed the tribulation of the Dao Stage.
Bai Chunsheng didn’t believe that Yan Yi truly had the ability to rival Dao Stage cultivators across major realms. However, if the situation was true, achieving such a level with only Nascent Soul cultivation meant either his cultivation technique was exceptional or Yan Yi’s combat talent was extraordinarily formidable, beyond imagination.
The last person who gave him this feeling was Yan Jingqiu.
But in the blink of an eye, Yan Jingqiu had grown into someone Bai Chunsheng looked up to.
Although Yan Yi was nowhere near Yan Jingqiu’s level, Bai Chunsheng had learned his lesson well from his encounter with Yan Jingqiu and dared not lower his guard.
Even before dawn fully broke, Bai Chunsheng, cloaked in the darkness of night, sneaked out of the sect.
After some consideration, compared to being scolded by his grandmother, being beaten up by the emerging Yan Yi seemed far worse to Bai Chunsheng. This time, he intended to nip the problem in the bud.
In the Middle Realm’s Treasure Gathering Pavilion, there was a dedicated teleportation array for the Yunhai Small World, which should have made entry and exit quite convenient. However, the Ten Thousand Demon Sect was a major customer of the Treasure Gathering Pavilion, and Bai Chunsheng’s identity was far from ordinary. Individuals like him had specially enchanted artifacts for identity recognition arranged by the Treasure Gathering Pavilion in various major stores across the Middle Realm. It was estimated that once he entered, he would be detected, and then the disciples stationed there by the Ten Thousand Demon Sect would report back to the sect. Even if his grandmother couldn’t come out of seclusion to catch him, there were still elders in the disciplinary hall. With the elders’ speed, they could arrive and apprehend him within an hour and bring him back to Moonfall Lake.
To avoid such a situation, Bai Chunsheng had no choice but to take a detour. He traveled through the interstitial space to reach the Ancient Forest Spirit Realm. He had heard that there were restrictions on the teleportation array to the Yunhai Small World, allowing only exits but not entries. Therefore, Bai Chunsheng had to take a boat from the Zhanbi River in the Ancient Forest Spirit Realm, upstream against the current, and cross the boundary wall to reach the Yunhai Small World.
As expected, the Yunhai Small World was as desolate as common knowledge suggested. The clouds hung low, and the land was mostly covered by the blue river water. Waves of blue water surged, and the low clouds were within reach. Clusters of tall redwood trees were scattered throughout the corners of the landscape.
Bai Chunsheng spent half a month exploring the desolate Yunhai Small World, finding nothing at all, not even a living soul.
Despite coming all this way, he refused to give up. He staked out the Yunhai Small World for another half month. Not only did he not encounter Yan Yi, he didn’t even see anyone coming to chase after Yan Yi. He began to suspect if someone was playing a trick on him and considered heading back home. However, Bai Chunsheng couldn’t swallow his pride and hesitated for a day or two before deciding to return.
Since he hadn’t found Yan Yi, Bai Chunsheng didn’t want to return empty-handed after coming all this way. He still took a boat across the boundary wall from the Zhanbi River, passing through the Ancient Forest Spirit Realm, and returned to the Grand World.
He decided to make another detour to the Ancient Forest Spirit Realm.
The Ancient Forest Spirit Realm was a small world densely populated with spiritual plants. Although the level of spiritual energy was slightly lower than that of the Grand World, the environment was very suitable for plant growth. One of Bai Chunsheng’s favorite fruits, the Yun Guang fruit, came from the Ancient Forest Spirit Realm. However, because it had a short shelf life, Bai Chunsheng secretly went to the market for cultivators in the Ancient Forest Spirit Realm to collect some.
Bai Chunsheng originally intended to buy some Yun Guang fruit and head back, but since he had already come all this way and wouldn’t be able to come out again for a while, he decided to make another trip to the largest restaurant in the Ancient Forest Spirit Realm to have a meal.
“Suchen Fairy Shen Yuying is getting married soon, and the Dragon Clan of the Water Abyss Realm is preparing a grand feast for the world.”
“Suchen Fairy of the Ten Thousand Demon Sect?”
“Exactly.”
In the largest restaurant in the Ancient Forest Spirit Realm, several cultivators at the Foundation Establishment stage were conversing in hushed tones. However, due to Bai Chunsheng’s higher cultivation level, every word of their conversation was transmitted directly to his ears without missing a single word.
Upon hearing this conversation, Bai Chunsheng was somewhat surprised because Shen Yuying was his grandmother’s junior disciple. As a descendant of the pure-blooded Dragon Clan, Shen Yuying had reached the mid-stage of Nascent Soul cultivation when she entered the sect. Over the past three hundred years, she had advanced to the late stage of Nascent Soul, which could be considered quite talented.
Bai Chunsheng rarely paid attention to internal matters of the sect, and he didn’t know much about Shen Yuying. All he knew was that she was exceptionally skilled in the Silver Butterfly Frost Dance technique. She was ruthless in her actions, decisive and efficient. If someone offended her and unluckily fell into her hands, they might not even be able to retain their soul.
However, Shen Yuying had always been prudent and had a sense of propriety in her actions. She was one of the relatively reliable cultivators within the Ten Thousand Demon Sect.
What was strange was that just a few months ago, Bai Chunsheng had met Shen Yuying, and she hadn’t mentioned anything about her upcoming marriage.
He was astonished that such a significant event as Shen Yuying’s marriage had occurred without his knowledge, and there was no hint of it within the Ten Thousand Demon Sect either.
Bai Chunsheng picked up the celestial scroll and carefully examined it. He found that this marriage contract seemed to have been arranged by the Dragon Clan of the Water Abyss Realm a long time ago, but it didn’t mention who the other party to the marriage was.
Although Bai Chunsheng didn’t have a particularly close relationship with Shen Yuying, as the chief disciple of the Ten Thousand Demon Sect, he felt it was important to understand. He quickly invoked a messaging spell, intending to inquire about the real person responsible for the ceremonial matters.
Unexpectedly, the messaging spell didn’t work as intended. Bai Chunsheng refused to give up and activated it again.
Still unsuccessful, he froze, realizing that this could only mean one thing.
Someone had set up a barrier, specifically targeting him.
It was an enemy.
Realizing this, Bai Chunsheng immediately reacted by overturning the table. The nearby cultivators were startled by his sudden outburst, and they reached for their swords to question him. However, they watched in horror as pale blue flames erupted from the ground, engulfing them in an instant. Their skin, bones, and flesh began to burn. The cultivators writhed on the ground like ordinary mortals, trying desperately to extinguish the flames, but to no avail. The flames entwined around their Nascent Souls, leaving them helpless, unable to escape or find release until the flames finally consumed them.
In an instant, the air was filled with desperate screams and horrifying shrieks, shattering the previously lively and bustling atmosphere of the restaurant.
Whether it was due to their cultivation techniques or intentional, the self-immolating cultivators twisted their bodies in agony as they crawled towards Bai Chunsheng. Lost to madness, they surrounded him like distorted torches.
The scene was eerie and clearly indicated that the enemy had come prepared. Seeing this, Bai Chunsheng’s mind raced with thoughts. Either someone within the Middle Realm sought to stir up chaos and turmoil by exploiting internal conflicts, or it was because Yan Jingqiu was dead, unable to suppress the restless ambitions of demons and evil beings, prompting them to seek a figure of high status and strength to intimidate others and incite discord.
Bai Chunsheng didn’t feel afraid; he found the situation rather amusing. After years of seclusion, he had somehow become a soft target in the eyes of others.
The scorching heat almost distorted the air, yet it couldn’t get anywhere near Bai Chunsheng.
Drawing his Surging Swan Sword, in an instant, with a few “thuds,” the heads of these puppets, who were already half-dead, rolled to the ground. For them, it could be considered liberation from suffering, and the flames, burning with vitality, were extinguished along with them.
The Shangshan Building fell into complete silence, so quiet that you could hear a pin drop.
Bai Chunsheng looked around calmly and said, “You guys——“
“Shouldn’t have come after me. Remember it in your next life.”
Huge shoutout to @_nyanmaru_ on Discord for commissioning this! The chapter will be posted regularly, show your support for Ciacia at Kofi.
<Previous Chapter<Table of Contents>Next Chapter>
