The others had not yet expressed their opinions on this speculation when the despondent Old Zheng suddenly erupted in anger, shouting: “Absurd! The upper realm is the upper realm. Could there be many upper realms?”

If Chu Xinghui’s guess was true… then what had he been doing all these years?

Chu Xinghui asked him: “Have you seen it with your own eyes?”

Old Zheng glared with wide eyes and said decisively: “Since ancient times, there has only been one upper realm for ascension. How could anyone doubt this?”

Chu Xinghui continued to reason with him: “No one has been to the upper realm, so no one knows what it really looks like. Any reasonable guess is possible. And one thing is certain: the upper realm two thousand years ago was definitely not the same as it is now. The upper realm two thousand years ago allowed ascension, but even if this upper realm allows ascension, who knows what will happen after ascending?”

Old Zheng’s emotions became more and more intense: “If a cultivator doesn’t aim for ascension, then what is the point of cultivating?”

Chu Xinghui felt like the old man didn’t understand human language: “Cultivation and ascension are two different things. The path a cultivator takes in cultivation is long or short, and ascension is just a node along the way. Does a cultivator cease to be a cultivator just because they can’t pass this node?”

There were so many cultivators who could not ascend, yet they still lived well. He hadn’t heard of any who stopped living just because they couldn’t ascend.

And he never said that cultivators shouldn’t pursue ascension. It was just that the current situation was clearly strange, and even if one pursued ascension, they should aim for an ascension that was positive and healthy, right?

Ascending to some chaotic and possibly dangerous place—he didn’t consider that ascension, he thought that was more like descending to hell.

Old Zheng couldn’t defend himself, so he cursed directly: “You have no ambition and don’t know what you’re talking about!”

He didn’t even have the ambition for ascension, and now he was saying that the upper realm wasn’t the upper realm—how could someone like that be the Son of the Heavenly Dao?

Hearing him start with personal attacks, Xie Liufeng reached out and patted his shoulder with a forced smile: “Hey, hey, hey, Senior Brother Zheng, watch your words. Who are you teaching a lesson to?”

Their Xingxing had said much better things than this, hadn’t he?

The intense pain in his shoulder forcibly pulled Old Zheng out of his excitement.

He glanced at Xie Liufeng but didn’t dare to speak, unwillingly becoming silent.

It was clear that he hadn’t been persuaded.

But fortunately, everyone present had no interest in persuading him.

Old Zheng was quickly secured again and assigned twenty four hour close guards.

The others then temporarily moved to another place and went to the hall where the Beiyue Sword Sect entertained guests.

Everyone sat down in their respective places.

Yue Yao took the initiative to speak: “At this point, we should be open and honest. I am a pragmatic person. I don’t have as much emotion as my master and master uncle, but I just want to solve the problem. As long as you all promise that, in the end, you will sever the connection between Bihai Taohua Island and the Book of Fate, and preferably destroy the Book of Fate, Bihai Taohua Island will cooperate with all your actions.”

Fang Yan, as the representative of the Beiyue Sword Sect, had to give his opinion on the matter occurring on his own turf: “Fellow Cultivator Yue, you should understand that this matter cannot be hidden. So… I will find some trusted people from each sect and inform them of this matter.”

Yue Yao closed her eyes: “This matter is a trouble that Bihai Taohua Island has caused for this realm. Asking the immortal cultivation world to help solve it is already asking a lot. It is only right that you inform others. Although it is hard to speak, the disciples of Bihai Taohua Island have no intention of harming anyone. This is an undeserved disaster, and I still want to try my best to save my fellow disciples. Afterward, I will issue an order to recall all disciples outside the island and temporarily seal all connections between Bihai Taohua Island and the outside world.”

She tried to buy time for her sect: “Please give Bihai Taohua Island some time. We will do our best to find a way to prevent the disciples from helping the Book of Fate absorb this realm’s luck. If we haven’t resolved the problem by the deadline, then… we can discuss the solution to Bihai Taohua Island’s issue. Is that acceptable?”

She was sincere, but the objective facts were there—whatever she said was powerless.

This was something everyone understood.

Fang Yan sighed and advised: “This matter concerns the entire immortal cultivation world. It is not something we can decide here, nor something that the Beiyue Sword Sect can decide alone. However, it will take some time to gather everyone’s opinions, so Fellow Cultivator Yue should make arrangements as soon as possible before that.”

Yue Yao did not push and nodded: “In any case, thank you all.”

She thought for a moment and spoke again: “Also, if possible, when this matter is resolved, I hope to bring my master uncle back to the sect. He has been wandering for years, and it is time for him to return home and enjoy his old age.”

Her gaze turned cold.

Everyone had no objections to this.

If this matter could truly be resolved, everyone believed that Yue Yao would give Old Zheng a warm and dignified ending.

Once everyone’s intentions were clear, they discussed some details and quickly separated to deal with their respective tasks.

Chu Xinghui and Xie Liufeng helped Fang Yan handle some of the follow-up issues of this matter.

It was already dark outside.

As things were nearly settled, the two of them planned to head home.

After they stepped out of the door, Chu Xinghui noticed that snow had started falling from the sky without him realizing it.

It was the first snow of the year.

It was a bit cold, and Xie Liufeng, worried that his Dao partner might catch a cold, held onto Chu Xinghui’s hand.

Chu Xinghui thought he was holding a bit too tightly and reminded him: “I’m not afraid of the cold anymore.”

Xie Liufeng acted shamelessly and refused to let go: “Then what should I do? I’m always worried you’ll get cold.”

Chu Xinghui: “…”

He silently leaned closer to Xie Liufeng.

Alright, maybe he could be a little cold.

The two of them held hands and walked side by side back home.

Seeing that Chu Xinghui looked troubled, Xie Liufeng shook his hand and asked: “What’s wrong? What are you thinking about?”

Chu Xinghui answered honestly: “I’m thinking about the Heavenly Ladder.”

Although the prophecy said he would sever the Heavenly Ladder, he had no clue about how to do it.

Xie Liufeng stopped and rubbed Chu Xinghui’s head, comforting him: “This is everyone’s matter, not just yours. Don’t worry too much. If it really comes to a point where there’s nothing left to do, I’ll just ascend and take a look myself.”

After all, after they cultivated together, the chains on his soul would eventually disappear.

Chu Xinghui glanced at him, feeling upset at his usual nonsense: “…The upper realm has problems. Normal people wouldn’t choose to ascend, would they?”

Xe Lifelong chuckled and kept talking nonsense: “Normal people wouldn’t dare to ascend, but I’m never normal.”

Chi Xingu raised his head and quietly stared at his partner for a moment.

Then, he directly burrowed into Xie Liufeng’s arms and muttered: “…Forget it, just be normal.”

Xie Liufeng stretched out his arms and held him tightly.

His embrace was warm enough to keep the wind and snow outside.

Chu Xinghui truly believed that Xie Liufeng could accomplish countless things that no one else had ever done—or even dared to imagine.

…But his partner was still a flesh-and-blood person, who could feel pain, and even die.

He was still so young, and he really didn’t want to become a widower.

So… unless absolutely necessary, it was better to be normal.

The two of them reached the base of Qingjing Peak when they suddenly saw a figure standing in the shadow below the mountain.

On this dark and windy night, the figure looked like a moving ghost in the wind and snow, which was a little frightening.

When they approached, the figure stepped out from the shadow, warmly greeting them.

It was Yue Yao, whom they had parted from not long ago.

She seemed to have stabilized her emotions a lot, at least on the surface, she had regained her usual composure.

She glanced at the two of them, her gaze landing on Chu Xinghui, and said to Xie Liufeng: “Sorry to trouble you, Sword Master. I need to borrow Cultivator Chu for a while.”

Xie Liufeng looked at Chu Xinghui, silently asking for his opinion.

Chu Xinghui nodded at him.

Xie Liufeng then let go of his hand and asked: “Do you want to eat something when you’re done?”

Chu Xinghui blinked and named two dishes.

Xie Liufeng pinched his cheek: “Alright, I’ll go make it for you.”

He headed home alone.

After Xie Liufeng left, Chu Xinghui followed Yue Yao to a nearby pavilion and asked: “Fellow Cultivator Yue, is there something you need to talk to me about?”

Yue Yao nodded: “Yes, I came to talk to you about an old commission.”

She looked at Chu Xinghui: “You must already know what the sacred object is, right?”

Chu Xinghui wasn’t sure why she suddenly brought this up, but he nodded.

Yue Yao asked: “Although it’s the sacred object of Bihai Taohua Island, I’ve never seen one like it. If it’s convenient, could you show it to me?”

Chu Xinghui explained honestly: “It’s used to hold my master’s remaining soul, and it’s not with me right now.”

Xie Liufeng wouldn’t let him carry such a dangerous thing around.

He took out a memory stone: “This is all I have.”

Yue Yao took the memory stone, nodding: “That’s enough. I just need to verify a few of my guesses.”

She closed her eyes, probing into the memory stone with her divine sense. After carefully inspecting the contents, she opened her eyes again and thoughtfully said: “Ah, I see now.”

Chu Xinghui remembered how she had been clueless just a while ago: “Fellow Cultivator Yue, you finally remember something about your sect’s sacred object?”

Yue Yao lightly touched the memory stone, thinking carefully: “…Mm, from its appearance, it indeed looks plain and unremarkable. There’s nothing that stands out. But for it to be Bihai Taohua Island’s sacred object, it must have some special purpose.”

Before she could continue, Chu Xinghui couldn’t help but interrupt. He spoke sincerely: “Fellow Cultivator Yue, now that everything is clear, there’s no need to keep things vague, right?”

Yue Yao paused for a moment, finally realizing that she had been speaking thoughtlessly, and smiled shyly: “Ah, sorry about that. It’s just my speaking habit. My habit won’t change just because I’m being honest with a partner.”

Chu Xinghui: “…”

That habit really was a waste of time.

Yue Yao gathered her thoughts and made a conscious effort to change her usual way of speaking. She finally put the most important information at the forefront: “The most important aspect of this object is its material. Fellow Cultivator Chu, you know that the Book of Fate came from Bihai Taohua Island. The material used for this item… is actually the leftover scraps from the forging of the Book of Fate by a senior from back then.”

Chu Xinghui’s eyes shifted slightly.

So, it made sense now. Old Zheng had used this thing to activate the formation and connect to the Book of Fate.

Yue Yao let out a sarcastic laugh: “According to the information I found, this sacred object is said to greatly improve the accuracy of divination… Just like how you sword cultivators can instantly learn a complex sword move. I always wondered why it was so easy. It turns out the Book of Fate was behind it.”

As expected, every shortcut came with its own price.

Chu Xinghui frowned as he looked at her.

Yue Yao, who was currently overwhelmed with problems, had specially taken the time to come and find him. It wasn’t just for a casual chat about the sacred object’s function.

After a brief guess, Chu Xinghui directly asked: “Fellow Cultivator Yue, you came here today to ask about this object because it can help with the current predicament of Bihai Taohua Island, right?”

Yue Yao paused for a moment, not answering directly. Instead, she asked: “This object has been missing for a long time. Fellow Cultivator Chu, could you tell me the story of how you came to possess it?”

 

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