"So, this is the power of an ultimate-tier Golden Core?"
Under the soft moonlight, Jiang Yuebai was dressed in a beautiful white silk dress that was embroidered with flowers and bound at the waist. With her sleeves fluttering in the breeze, her tall and slender figure looked like an immortal descending from the night sky as she landed behind Chu Liang.
Jiang Yuebai had just emerged from closed-door cultivation when she received a message from Chu Liang saying that he had something urgent to talk to her about. She'd immediately rushed over to find Chu Liang and happened to see him testing his sword behind a hill.
That was when she witnessed the power of Chu Liang's strike with her own eyes. She realized that it was far superior to the prowess of her sword qi when she first reached the Golden Core Realm.
Jiang Yuebai and Chu Liang were at the same realm and had the same divine abilities. The only difference was that Chu Liang had the ultimate-tier Golden Core. It was surprising how much of a difference it made.
She'd always known that ultimate-tier Golden Cores were powerful, she didn't expect them to be this formidable.
Chu Liang grinned. "Hehe."
To be precise, this was the power of two ultimate-tier Golden Cores... he added inwardly.
Chu Liang asked, "Senior Sister Jiang, did you just emerge from closed-door cultivation?"
"Yes." Jiang Yuebai nodded. "I came over after seeing your message."
"I suppose you've made another breakthrough in your cultivation?"
Senior Sister Jiang was already at the pinnacle of the fourth realm before. Could she be at the fifth realm now?
"Not yet," Jiang Yuebai answered, denying Chu Liang's assumption. "Tomorrow is the day when they announce the assignment for the Mountain God Memorial Ceremony. I need to sign up in person, so I had to emerge from closed-door cultivation."
"The Mountain God Memorial Ceremony?" Chu Liang uttered.
He blanked out for a moment and then realized that day had indeed arrived.
The Mountain God Memorial Ceremony was an event that the Mount Shu Sect hosted in commemoration of Mount Shu's Mountain God. The sect would usually hold it three months before each Mount Shu Summit and pick a treasure for the disciples to team up and locate.
The treasure would be hidden somewhere on Mount Shu, and disciples would search for it in groups of five. The aim of this activity was to let the disciples deepen their attachment to and understanding of Mount Shu. The winners of the Mountain God Memorial Ceremony would be announced at the Mount Shu Summit. It was essentially a fun event for the disciples.
The moment news of the upcoming Mount Shu Summit got out, the sect's disciples had already started looking for team members. However, Chu Liang hadn't heard anything about it because disciples usually prioritized selecting teammates from the disciples that belonged to their peaks.
Only those who couldn't find teammates due to their peak lacking in numbers would seek teammates from other peaks. So, it was natural that no one had come looking for Chu Liang to join their team.
Jiang Yuebai noticed Chu Liang's expression and immediately realized what situation he was in.
She explained, "I have no interest in this kind of boring game, especially since it hampers my cultivation. But my teacher warned that I need to strike a balance between work and rest, so he arranged for me to join the event with a few disciples from my peak. I probably won't contribute much to their search."
"Senior Sister Jiang, you're so devoted to cultivating. You truly are a role model for us all," Chu Liang remarked with a laugh.
"Sure, sure. What's the urgent matter that you wanted to discuss with me?" Jiang Yuebai asked, casually changing the subject.
Interacting with emotionally intelligent people was indeed the most comfortable experience. There would never be any awkwardness.
Chu Liang took out the bottle and handed it to Jiang Yuebai.
He said, "Someone asked me to give this to you."
"This is..." Jiang Yuebai opened the bottle and inspected its contents. She felt a little bewildered. "The gallbladder of a Pure Gold Dragon-Snake?"
Chu Liang had, of course, already checked the content of the bottle before giving it to Jiang Yuebai. It wasn't because he wanted to pry into what secrets lay inside; it was out of caution in case someone was trying to harm Jiang Yuebai. When Chu Liang was at the Hall of Alchemy, he had someone take a look at what was inside the bottle. He hadn't mentioned its origin; he'd only said that he wanted to have it appraised. That was how he found out what was inside it.
The gallbladder of a Pure Gold Dragon-Snake was a gold-attribute panacea of a very high grade. Given Jiang Yuebai's circumstances, the gifter's intention was probably for Jiang Yuebai to use the panacea as an aid in breaking through to the fifth realm.
The Pure Gold Dragon-Snake was an extremely powerful spirit beast, and hunting it down was no easy feat. Considering Jiang Yuebai's capabilities, she would have no problem acquiring the treasures of nature she needed to help break through to the fifth realm, but it was very unlikely that she would be able to obtain a treasure of this caliber.
Using the gallbladder of a Pure Gold Dragon-Snake to reach the fifth realm was equivalent to Chu Liang using the Dark Sea Golden Lotus to reach the Golden Core Realm. Both cases were considered excessive, so much so that it would be a waste of those ingredients.
"Who asked you to give this to me?" Jiang Yuebai asked.
Chu Liang answered, "It was the Whale-Riding Immortal."
...
A moment later, Chu Liang recounted what he'd experienced that day when he met the Whale-Riding Immortal once more.
After hearing the whole story, Jiang Yuebai was in a daze as she became lost in her thoughts. She normally had bright and clear eyes that looked like limpid autumn waters, but she now appeared misty-eyed.
After a long while, Jiang Yuebai muttered, "Is it him?"
"Senior Sister Jiang, are you okay?" Chu Liang asked concernedly.
Jiang Yuebai shook her head. Her shoulders trembled slightly. She wrapped her hands around her elbows and gazed up at the moon.
Chu Liang didn't disturb her.
After a while, Jiang Yuebai spoke again. "There are very few people on Mount Shu who know the details of my past."
Chu Liang's perked up with interest. "Hm?"
"I possess the Transcendent Spirit, so many people have speculated that I'm from the Jiang Family. But the truth is, I've been at Mount Shu since my birth; I grew up here. I've never even seen my parents before.
"My teacher said that my father's name is Jiang Tiankuo. He was a prominent figure in the Jiang Family many years ago.
"As for my mother, she emerged from that incredibly mysterious and ancient Divine Ruins. They fell in love and had me.
"But after I was born, my mother returned to the Divine Ruins. Instead of leaving me with the Jiang Family, my father placed me in the care of Mount Shu's Azure Falling Peak. He then embarked on a journey to find my mother, but there has been no news about him ever since.
"The only news that surfaced was that shortly after my father embarked on his journey, the legendary Divine Ruins Monastery took action and wiped out the Jiang Family."
After the first few sentences, everything else was new to Chu Liang.
Like many disciples in the Mount Shu Sect, Chu Liang believed that the Jiang Family had been wiped out except for one survivor, a child who had become an orphan. The Mount Shu Sect had then taken that orphan into their care.
Thinking about it now... how could a child have survived when her entire family was annihilated?
It turned out that Jiang Yuebai had been sent to Mount Shu right after birth.
As for the Divine Ruins... Chu Liang knew from legends that cultivators at the Profound Realm, the ninth and highest realm of cultivation, would go there when their long lives approached their end, never to return.
Chu Liang had tried learning more about the Divine Ruins Monastery after hearing about it from Jiang Yuebai previously. However, there wasn't much about this sect in the Mount Shu Sect's records.
He did occasionally find some small mentions about it that indicated the sect was a Daoist monastery that had occupied the Divine Ruins for many years. Aside from that, there were no other details.
If what Jiang Yuebai said was true, then the Divine Ruins Monastery was likely a terrifyingly powerful sect.
The three major immortal-cultivation families had been passing down their legacies since ancient times. The Xia Family had become and was still the imperial family.
As for the Jiang Family, they had been an incredibly powerful family, capable of standing on equal footing with the Xia Family. Yet, they had been annihilated with no signs forewarning of such a tragic event, nor had there been any traces left behind. Even the top immortal sects in the Divine Nine and Terrestrial Ten might not have been able to do such a thing so easily.
Whenever the Jiang Family was mentioned in the cultivation world, everyone knew that it no longer existed. However, no one could explain how it had been wiped out.
Chu Liang then realized who the Whale-Riding Immortal could be.
Could he be Senior Sister Jiang's father, Jiang Tiankuo?
This...
Did I accidentally meet Senior Sister Jiang's father?
How embarrassing... No, rather than that, it's just unbelievable.
Chu Liang carefully recalled whether he'd shown any impoliteness to the Whale-Riding Immortal.
It seems like I didn't.
Fate is truly inexplicable.
"From what you said, it sounds like the crystal palace in the Immortals' Marsh could be related to the Jiang Family. And if that's truly the case, then aside from me... he's the only one who could be a surviving member of the Jiang Family," Jiang Yuebai said.
There was a glimmering radiance in her eyes; they were shimmering so brightly that it was hard to tell if she was feeling hopeful for a reunion or a chance to act on her resentment.
Chu Liang hesitated for a moment before saying, "Senior Sister Jiang, I don't know much about these things, so I can't give you any advice. However, no matter what happens, you still have us... Your fellow disciples on Mount Shu like you a lot. Mount Shu is your home, and that will never change."
Jiang Yuebai gazed at Chu Liang with a gentle smile. "Thank you."
"You don't need to be so polite with me..." Chu Liang replied with a smile, waving off Jiang Yuebai's expression of gratitude.
"Actually, I've been investigating matters related to the Divine Ruins during the past few years. But I couldn't find out much," Jiang Yuebai said. "My teacher said it's an inauspicious place and that misfortune will befall those who get too close. But my mother came from there, and my father vanished there. And I... I was born unlucky. I can't escape misfortune."
"I must find out the truth," she concluded softly, so much so that it was more like she was talking to herself.
As Chu Liang looked at Jiang Yuebai's figure in the night breeze, he noticed her determined gaze. It was as if there was a fire blazing inside her.
Perhaps this was the real Jiang Yuebai—gentle and cold on the outside but as firm and steady as a rock on the inside.
...
The night passed by filled with sweet dreams.
The next morning, Chu Liang got up, washed up, and tidied up his place.
Then he heard someone shouting outside, "My best bro, are you awake? I have something important to discuss with you."
That booming voice full of energy—Chu Liang could tell straight away that it was Lin Bei.
Chu Liang opened the door and asked, "What's the matter? Why did you come running over so early in the morning?"
"Heheheh!" Lin Bei laughed loudly. "Did you know that today is the day when the first puzzle for the Mountain God Memorial Ceremony is announced?"
"Hmm? Yeah, what about it?" Chu Liang asked.
Lin Bei answered, "I've come to ask you to team up with me."
"So, this is the power of an ultimate-tier Golden Core?"
Under the soft moonlight, Jiang Yuebai was dressed in a beautiful white silk dress that was embroidered with flowers and bound at the waist. With her sleeves fluttering in the breeze, her tall and slender figure looked like an immortal descending from the night sky as she landed behind Chu Liang.
Jiang Yuebai had just emerged from closed-door cultivation when she received a message from Chu Liang saying that he had something urgent to talk to her about. She'd immediately rushed over to find Chu Liang and happened to see him testing his sword behind a hill.
That was when she witnessed the power of Chu Liang's strike with her own eyes. She realized that it was far superior to the prowess of her sword qi when she first reached the Golden Core Realm.
Jiang Yuebai and Chu Liang were at the same realm and had the same divine abilities. The only difference was that Chu Liang had the ultimate-tier Golden Core. It was surprising how much of a difference it made.
She'd always known that ultimate-tier Golden Cores were powerful, she didn't expect them to be this formidable.
Chu Liang grinned. "Hehe."
To be precise, this was the power of two ultimate-tier Golden Cores... he added inwardly.
Chu Liang asked, "Senior Sister Jiang, did you just emerge from closed-door cultivation?"
"Yes." Jiang Yuebai nodded. "I came over after seeing your message."
"I suppose you've made another breakthrough in your cultivation?"
Senior Sister Jiang was already at the pinnacle of the fourth realm before. Could she be at the fifth realm now?
"Not yet," Jiang Yuebai answered, denying Chu Liang's assumption. "Tomorrow is the day when they announce the assignment for the Mountain God Memorial Ceremony. I need to sign up in person, so I had to emerge from closed-door cultivation."
"The Mountain God Memorial Ceremony?" Chu Liang uttered.
He blanked out for a moment and then realized that day had indeed arrived.
The Mountain God Memorial Ceremony was an event that the Mount Shu Sect hosted in commemoration of Mount Shu's Mountain God. The sect would usually hold it three months before each Mount Shu Summit and pick a treasure for the disciples to team up and locate.
The treasure would be hidden somewhere on Mount Shu, and disciples would search for it in groups of five. The aim of this activity was to let the disciples deepen their attachment to and understanding of Mount Shu. The winners of the Mountain God Memorial Ceremony would be announced at the Mount Shu Summit. It was essentially a fun event for the disciples.
The moment news of the upcoming Mount Shu Summit got out, the sect's disciples had already started looking for team members. However, Chu Liang hadn't heard anything about it because disciples usually prioritized selecting teammates from the disciples that belonged to their peaks.
Only those who couldn't find teammates due to their peak lacking in numbers would seek teammates from other peaks. So, it was natural that no one had come looking for Chu Liang to join their team.
Jiang Yuebai noticed Chu Liang's expression and immediately realized what situation he was in.
She explained, "I have no interest in this kind of boring game, especially since it hampers my cultivation. But my teacher warned that I need to strike a balance between work and rest, so he arranged for me to join the event with a few disciples from my peak. I probably won't contribute much to their search."
"Senior Sister Jiang, you're so devoted to cultivating. You truly are a role model for us all," Chu Liang remarked with a laugh.
"Sure, sure. What's the urgent matter that you wanted to discuss with me?" Jiang Yuebai asked, casually changing the subject.
Interacting with emotionally intelligent people was indeed the most comfortable experience. There would never be any awkwardness.
Chu Liang took out the bottle and handed it to Jiang Yuebai.
He said, "Someone asked me to give this to you."
"This is..." Jiang Yuebai opened the bottle and inspected its contents. She felt a little bewildered. "The gallbladder of a Pure Gold Dragon-Snake?"
Chu Liang had, of course, already checked the content of the bottle before giving it to Jiang Yuebai. It wasn't because he wanted to pry into what secrets lay inside; it was out of caution in case someone was trying to harm Jiang Yuebai. When Chu Liang was at the Hall of Alchemy, he had someone take a look at what was inside the bottle. He hadn't mentioned its origin; he'd only said that he wanted to have it appraised. That was how he found out what was inside it.
The gallbladder of a Pure Gold Dragon-Snake was a gold-attribute panacea of a very high grade. Given Jiang Yuebai's circumstances, the gifter's intention was probably for Jiang Yuebai to use the panacea as an aid in breaking through to the fifth realm.
The Pure Gold Dragon-Snake was an extremely powerful spirit beast, and hunting it down was no easy feat. Considering Jiang Yuebai's capabilities, she would have no problem acquiring the treasures of nature she needed to help break through to the fifth realm, but it was very unlikely that she would be able to obtain a treasure of this caliber.
Using the gallbladder of a Pure Gold Dragon-Snake to reach the fifth realm was equivalent to Chu Liang using the Dark Sea Golden Lotus to reach the Golden Core Realm. Both cases were considered excessive, so much so that it would be a waste of those ingredients.
"Who asked you to give this to me?" Jiang Yuebai asked.
Chu Liang answered, "It was the Whale-Riding Immortal."
...
A moment later, Chu Liang recounted what he'd experienced that day when he met the Whale-Riding Immortal once more.
After hearing the whole story, Jiang Yuebai was in a daze as she became lost in her thoughts. She normally had bright and clear eyes that looked like limpid autumn waters, but she now appeared misty-eyed.
After a long while, Jiang Yuebai muttered, "Is it him?"
"Senior Sister Jiang, are you okay?" Chu Liang asked concernedly.
Jiang Yuebai shook her head. Her shoulders trembled slightly. She wrapped her hands around her elbows and gazed up at the moon.
Chu Liang didn't disturb her.
After a while, Jiang Yuebai spoke again. "There are very few people on Mount Shu who know the details of my past."
Chu Liang's perked up with interest. "Hm?"
"I possess the Transcendent Spirit, so many people have speculated that I'm from the Jiang Family. But the truth is, I've been at Mount Shu since my birth; I grew up here. I've never even seen my parents before.
"My teacher said that my father's name is Jiang Tiankuo. He was a prominent figure in the Jiang Family many years ago.
"As for my mother, she emerged from that incredibly mysterious and ancient Divine Ruins. They fell in love and had me.
"But after I was born, my mother returned to the Divine Ruins. Instead of leaving me with the Jiang Family, my father placed me in the care of Mount Shu's Azure Falling Peak. He then embarked on a journey to find my mother, but there has been no news about him ever since.
"The only news that surfaced was that shortly after my father embarked on his journey, the legendary Divine Ruins Monastery took action and wiped out the Jiang Family."
After the first few sentences, everything else was new to Chu Liang.
Like many disciples in the Mount Shu Sect, Chu Liang believed that the Jiang Family had been wiped out except for one survivor, a child who had become an orphan. The Mount Shu Sect had then taken that orphan into their care.
Thinking about it now... how could a child have survived when her entire family was annihilated?
It turned out that Jiang Yuebai had been sent to Mount Shu right after birth.
As for the Divine Ruins... Chu Liang knew from legends that cultivators at the Profound Realm, the ninth and highest realm of cultivation, would go there when their long lives approached their end, never to return.
Chu Liang had tried learning more about the Divine Ruins Monastery after hearing about it from Jiang Yuebai previously. However, there wasn't much about this sect in the Mount Shu Sect's records.
He did occasionally find some small mentions about it that indicated the sect was a Daoist monastery that had occupied the Divine Ruins for many years. Aside from that, there were no other details.
If what Jiang Yuebai said was true, then the Divine Ruins Monastery was likely a terrifyingly powerful sect.
The three major immortal-cultivation families had been passing down their legacies since ancient times. The Xia Family had become and was still the imperial family.
As for the Jiang Family, they had been an incredibly powerful family, capable of standing on equal footing with the Xia Family. Yet, they had been annihilated with no signs forewarning of such a tragic event, nor had there been any traces left behind. Even the top immortal sects in the Divine Nine and Terrestrial Ten might not have been able to do such a thing so easily.
Whenever the Jiang Family was mentioned in the cultivation world, everyone knew that it no longer existed. However, no one could explain how it had been wiped out.
Chu Liang then realized who the Whale-Riding Immortal could be.
Could he be Senior Sister Jiang's father, Jiang Tiankuo?
This...
Did I accidentally meet Senior Sister Jiang's father?
How embarrassing... No, rather than that, it's just unbelievable.
Chu Liang carefully recalled whether he'd shown any impoliteness to the Whale-Riding Immortal.
It seems like I didn't.
Fate is truly inexplicable.
"From what you said, it sounds like the crystal palace in the Immortals' Marsh could be related to the Jiang Family. And if that's truly the case, then aside from me... he's the only one who could be a surviving member of the Jiang Family," Jiang Yuebai said.
There was a glimmering radiance in her eyes; they were shimmering so brightly that it was hard to tell if she was feeling hopeful for a reunion or a chance to act on her resentment.
Chu Liang hesitated for a moment before saying, "Senior Sister Jiang, I don't know much about these things, so I can't give you any advice. However, no matter what happens, you still have us... Your fellow disciples on Mount Shu like you a lot. Mount Shu is your home, and that will never change."
Jiang Yuebai gazed at Chu Liang with a gentle smile. "Thank you."
"You don't need to be so polite with me..." Chu Liang replied with a smile, waving off Jiang Yuebai's expression of gratitude.
"Actually, I've been investigating matters related to the Divine Ruins during the past few years. But I couldn't find out much," Jiang Yuebai said. "My teacher said it's an inauspicious place and that misfortune will befall those who get too close. But my mother came from there, and my father vanished there. And I... I was born unlucky. I can't escape misfortune."
"I must find out the truth," she concluded softly, so much so that it was more like she was talking to herself.
As Chu Liang looked at Jiang Yuebai's figure in the night breeze, he noticed her determined gaze. It was as if there was a fire blazing inside her.
Perhaps this was the real Jiang Yuebai—gentle and cold on the outside but as firm and steady as a rock on the inside.
...
The night passed by filled with sweet dreams.
The next morning, Chu Liang got up, washed up, and tidied up his place.
Then he heard someone shouting outside, "My best bro, are you awake? I have something important to discuss with you."
That booming voice full of energy—Chu Liang could tell straight away that it was Lin Bei.
Chu Liang opened the door and asked, "What's the matter? Why did you come running over so early in the morning?"
"Heheheh!" Lin Bei laughed loudly. "Did you know that today is the day when the first puzzle for the Mountain God Memorial Ceremony is announced?"
"Hmm? Yeah, what about it?" Chu Liang asked.
Lin Bei answered, "I've come to ask you to team up with me."
