I Shall Be Everlasting In the World of Immortals

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"Found you!"

A cold, oppressive voice echoed from the skies of the Nine Fiery Heavens.

Swoosh!

A hulking six-zhang-tall man-shaped puppet, clad in green armor, with a ghastly black face and fanged mouth, descended from the gloomy skies shrouded in ghostly mist. Its speed far surpassed the Core Formation stage as it transformed into a swirling storm of ghostly wind, striking downward toward a sandy pit below.

“A quasi-fourth-rank puppet? Mysterious Mechanism Tower, you have gone back on your word—!”

The traveling merchant cultivator meditating in the sandpit below turned pale, his expression frantic as he cursed angrily.

Boom!

The merchant cultivator hurled a bead into the air, which erupted in a dense gray fog, spreading across a radius of ten li, effectively interfering with spiritual senses and isolating it.

The green-armored puppet, standing six zhang tall, swung its arm violently. Ghostly winds laced with green metallic energy swept across several hundred zhang, precisely targeting a section of the misty area.

Bang!

Within the gray fog, the merchant cultivator barely avoided the center of the strike, but he was still grazed by the outer edges of the blast. The spiritual light protecting his body shattered, and he was sent hurtling through the air.

As the merchant cultivator tumbled, fragments of high-grade protective armor peeled off his body, revealing intricate mechanical components beneath.

“Jie jie! So it’s truly a puppet! And one containing soul-seeding techniques surpassing those of the Thousand Mechanisms Sect!”

The green-armored man’s eye sockets flickered with ghostly green flames, his expression turning even more exhilarated.

Suddenly!

From the merchant cultivator’s tumbling figure, a streak of icy light in the shape of an arrow shot out from his sleeve. It moved with blinding speed, appearing before the green-armored puppet in the blink of an eye, catching it off guard.

Clang!

The puppet made no attempt to dodge, allowing the sleeve arrow to strike its chest directly.

Boom!

The ghostly mist exploded.

A strike comparable to that of a late-stage Core Formation Great Cultivator left only a faint scratch on the puppet’s chest.

The poisoned sleeve arrow, quivering from the impact, fell away and quickly returned to the merchant cultivator’s hand.

“So this is the so-called Azure Dragon Society? Such unimpressive tricks!”

The green-armored puppet sneered mockingly, its massive iron-green hand snapping out to grab the sleeve arrow mid-flight, crushing it effortlessly.

It had caught an magical treasure bare-handed!

And endured a late-stage Core Formation attack without damage!

The merchant cultivator was horrified. Without hesitation, he activated a secret movement technique, his figure turning into a shadow as he attempted to flee.

His true body was that of the assassin puppet, specializing in speed and stealth techniques.

Yet the green-armored puppet was even faster. It moved like ghostly mist, closing the distance in just a few breaths as though teleporting.

Boom! Thud! Thud!

The ground exploded continuously as crystalline yellow stone pillars shot into the sky, each over ten zhang tall, creating a barrier to block the green-armored puppet’s pursuit.

“Hm? There's a rat demon!”

The green-armored puppet stomped heavily, ghostly light rippling around its feet. One by one, it shattered the towering pillars blocking its path, leaving a trail of explosions and a cloud of flying sand.

Amidst the sandstorm, a sharp gust of wind swept toward the puppet’s back.

A massive orange-yellow rat demon, as agile as a hunting leopard, appeared behind the green-armored puppet.

Smack!

The creature’s massive, fan-like claws struck the puppet’s back with incredible force, causing its towering frame to stumble.

A three-zhang-long gash was left on the puppet’s back, nearly ripping through its armored surface.

“Not right! This isn’t an ordinary rat demon!”

The green-armored puppet was taken aback. Its iron-green arm swung backward in a cleaving motion, but its strike hit nothing but empty air.

Swoosh!

The orange-yellow rat demon vanished into the desert sands, using the swirling sand to conceal itself. Its burst of speed, strength, and combat awareness far surpassed most late-stage third-rank beasts.

“Your Excellency, if you wish to fight the Azure Dragon Society, you will have to stay here forever today.”

A cold, ethereal woman’s voice rang out from the distance.

In the haze of the sandstorm, the figure of a female cultivator in a pink dress appeared. Her steps were light and graceful, her form like an illusory mirage amidst the flying sand.

The desolate desert warped strangely, the surroundings shrouded in a pink mist. Beneath the puppet’s feet, the sand transformed into a bubbling hot spring.

“Hmph! Mere illusions!”

The ghostly green flames in the green-armored puppet’s eye sockets flared up, dispelling the pink mist in an instant.

Its ghostly soul power exceeded the limits of a peak Core Formation cultivator, breaking through the third-rank illusion with ease.

Taking advantage of the momentary distraction, the rat demon unleashed a massive sandstorm spell, its power engulfing the green-armored puppet’s six-zhang-tall frame.

Simultaneously, the merchant cultivator puppet hurled a throwing blade weapon, which released a ten-zhang-long blade of sharp energy that slashed toward the green-armored puppet.

Reacting swiftly, the green-armored puppet unleashed a storm of ghostly green winds from its body. The winds swirled around it, deflecting both the sandstorm and the throwing’s blade energy.

Even though the rat demon and the two puppets—each comparable to a late-stage Core Formation cultivator—joined forces, they could do little against the quasi-fourth-rank green-armored puppet.

...

"Enough with these petty tricks! It ends here!"

The green-armored puppet’s stiff face twisted into a sinister and icy grin.

Its massive, gaping mouth split open as the two blackish-green fangs on either side suddenly detached, igniting with ghostly green flames that radiated an aura of extreme danger.

Screeech!

The Earth Burrowing Rat's fur stood on end as an overwhelming chill surged through its body. Trembling, it instinctively burrowed deeper into the desert sands.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Hiss—

The two fangs, now blazing with ghostly fire, streaked through the air, leaving afterimages as they hurtled toward the Earth Burrowing Rat and the assassin puppet.

The assassin puppet even with exceptional agility and speed found itself locked on by the fangs. In a flash, they were upon it, leaving no room to evade.

It could only raise its arm, which morphed into a shield, to block the incoming attack.

Crack!

The fangs sliced through the puppet’s arm with ease. The severed limb, crafted from superior-grade third-rank materials, was engulfed by ghostly flames that spread across its body, leaving it battered and charred. The puppet tumbled, crashing heavily into the sandpit below.

The Earth Burrowing Rat, despite its quick burrowing and the protective buffering of the rocky earth, was unable to escape unscathed.

Shhhhk!

In a critical moment, the rat twisted its body and shrank itself just enough to narrowly avoid a direct hit. Even so, the residual aura of the ghostly fang grazed its abdomen, leaving a deep, corrosive wound.

Screeeech!

The rat screeched in agony as the ghost flames burned into its sea of consciousness, a sharp, searing pain wracking its body. It managed to burrow deeper into the ground, where the power of the ghost flame fangs diminished. The fangs returned to the gaping maw of the green-armored puppet, their deadly glow now dimmed.

The puppet’s glowing green eyes fixed on the severely damaged assassin puppet in the sandpit.

“You’re next!”

The green-armored puppet raised its arm, unleashing a ghostly cyan whirlwind laced with deadly energy, intent on finishing off its prey.

“Hmm?”

Just as it closed in on the sandpit, an unusual fluctuation rippled through the air.

The damaged assassin puppet, disguised as the merchant cultivator, vanished into thin air, as if it had stepped into another dimension.

At the same time, the ground beneath the sandpit erupted with an overwhelming surge of spiritual power.

Boom!

Thirty-six talismans shot skyward, bursting into dazzling rays of light that tore through the yellow sand and ghostly mist above.

Buzz!

The radiant energy of the talismans wove together, forming intricate patterns of a Five Elements formation that enveloped the area in a hundred-zhang-wide cylindrical barrier.

"Talisman formation?!"

The green-armored puppet’s expression shifted, realizing it had walked into a trap.

It tried to retreat, but the ground beneath it pulled with tremendous force, locking it in place.

Among the thirty-six talismans, twelve were superior-grade third-rank, while the remaining twenty-four were top-quality mid-grade third-rank.

Together, they formed a formation that unleashed power nearing the Nascent Soul stage, strong enough to pose a genuine threat to the puppet.

“Break!”

The green-armored puppet lashed out in frustration, its arms cutting through the air with explosive force. Ghostly winds collided with the multicolored barriers of the formation, creating waves of dazzling energy. Despite its efforts, the puppet could not break free in a short time.

“Hehe, worthy of being a quasi-fourth rank puppet, it's body is so resilient."

Beyond the glowing barrier, a man in a green robe materialized at the spot where the merchant cultivator had disappeared. He casually brushed the storage ring on his finger, a faint smile on his lips.

The green-armored puppet’s core shuddered. It had previously scouted the area and detected no other cultivators nearby, but this newcomer had appeared out of nowhere.

Still, the man’s late-stage Core Formation cultivation was within expectations.

If he were a Nascent Soul cultivator, there would have been no need for negotiation or subterfuge. A Nascent Soul cultivator would have easily crushed them outright.

“Junior! Are you the mastermind behind the Azure Dragon Society’s schemes? Do you think this talisman formation can hold me for long?”

The green-armored puppet continued its attack while secretly channeling energy into the two fangs in its mouth.

The green-robed man, Lan Chang'an, smiled faintly and replied, “And how long can the puppet core within you sustain itself, I wonder?”

With a wave of his sleeve, eight beams of light descended to the ground.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

Eight archer puppets appeared, each drawing their bows, their auras comparable to mid-stage Core Formation cultivators.

Arrows of spiritual energy shot forth, streaking through the air like brilliant rainbows, bombarding the green-armored puppet relentlessly.

In addition, two mid-grade third-rank puppets, one shaped like a black eagle and the other like a massive earth-dragon beast, joined in with long-range spell attacks.

But the assault didn’t stop there.

The previously defeated charm puppet, assassin puppet, and Earth Burrowing Rat re-entered the fray, launching attacks from outside the formation.

In an instant, the green-armored puppet found itself besieged on all sides, its expression turning grim.

Even though its power surpassed most late-stage Core Formation cultivators, the combined assault of so many third-rank beings left it in disarray. Explosions of spiritual light burst around it continuously, filling the air with deafening booms.

Thud! Thud!

A massive, dark green turtle appeared at Lan Chang'an’s feet. Its mouth opened, spitting out globes of deep, heavy water.

Splash!

The water orbs crashed into the green-armored puppet’s massive frame.

“Profound Heavy Water?”

The puppet’s six-zhang-tall body shuddered under the weight of the attack. The ghostly energy coating its surface began to corrode, the sinister water’s yin energy seeping into its frame.

Fortunately, the turtle was only at the peak of early third-rank. Had it been late third-rank, the threat would have been far greater.

“How long can this cornered beast hold out?”

Lan Chang'an slowly opened his palm, revealing a braided rope radiating the aura of a superior-grade magical treasure.

It was precisely the binding-type magical treasure obtained from Master Lihuo. This was its first use in nearly a century.

Crackle! Zzzt!

As Lan Chang'an channeled his immense Core Formation power into the whip, it crackled with lightning, transforming into a radiant serpent of pure electricity. It lashed out toward the green-armored puppet.

The puppet sensed imminent danger and tried to evade, but trapped within the talisman formation and besieged by attacks, its movements were severely restricted.

The serpent-like lightning whip wove past the puppet’s defensive arm and coiled tightly around its six-zhang-tall frame.

Zzzzzt!

The green-armored puppet convulsed violently as arcs of electricity surged through its body. Smoke rose from its scorched frame, and ghostly wails echoed from within.

Lightning was highly effective against ghostly energies, overwhelming the puppet’s defenses.

"An Immortal Golden Dan Great Cultivator... wielding a superior-grade lightning magical treasure..."

The green-armored puppet let out a roar of rage and despair. Despite its power, it could no longer withstand the relentless onslaught.

Boom!

With a deafening crash, the six-zhang-tall puppet collapsed to one knee, the ghostly energy surrounding it dissipating by half.

Lan Chang'an’s face was calm, but a hint of satisfaction flickered in his eyes.

“The power of an Immortal Golden Dan cultivator truly is on another level,” he mused. “Using a superior-grade magical treasure no longer feels so taxing.”

Lan Chang'an felt exhilarated, recklessly unleashing his formidable magical power and spiritual sense.

At this moment, he seemed to wield the whip of a thunder god, firmly restraining the quasi-fourth-rank puppet.

Ordinarily, superior-grade magical treasures belonged to the Nascent Soul-level, most commonly wielded by cultivators in the early Nascent Soul stage. However, a late-stage Core Formation Great Cultivator could barely manage to utilize them, though only a portion of their full power could be unleashed.

The drawback was the massive consumption of magical power and spiritual sense. Only if it was one's lifebound magical treasure would the consumption lessen.

Because of this, Lan Chang'an had previously avoided using other superior-grade magical treasures—or rather, he simply didn't want to risk being left in a state of mana exhaustion.

Since advancing to the late Core Formation stage, however, Lan Chang'an's magical power, particularly his spiritual sense, had vastly outstripped that of Fang Zhen in his prime.

Now, wielding a superior-grade magical treasure, Lan Chang'an utterly outmatched Fang Zhen's Flaming Mountain, both in agility and destructive power.

...

"A mere quasi-fourth-rank puppet? Nothing more!"

Lan Chang'an exhaled softly, a trace of relief appearing on his calm face as he tightened his grip on the situation.

“Ganging up on me? What kind of ability is that?! You claim to be an Immortal Golden Dan cultivator, do you dare to fight with me head on?”

The green-armored puppet roared in fury, its massive frame kneeling in the sand. It stubbornly held on, its incredibly durable puppet materials allowing it to resist the continuous assault.

However, after being bombarded with the relentless lightning attacks, the ghostly green flames within its eye sockets flickered as its chaotic emotions settled into cold clarity.

It was biding its time, waiting for the talisman formation to exhaust its energy reserves or for reinforcements from Mysterious Mechanism Tower to arrive. Once help came, an internal and external assault would break this stalemate.

"Your Excellency is overthinking things," Lan Chang'an said with a faint smile. "A group beating is also a skill."

If this had been a one-on-one battle, without resorting to his fourth life descent or the Soul-Piercing Barbed Arrow, Lan Chang'an would have stood no chance against a quasi-fourth-rank puppet.

He had briefly considered using the Soul-Piercing Barbed Arrow to end the fight quickly.

The puppet’s ghost spirit consciousness was transformed from a peak Core Formation vicious ghost, its divine soul power far exceeding the limits of the Core Formation stage. Below the level of Nascent Soul True Monarch, it had the strongest spiritual sense Lan Chang'an had seen in this life—stronger than even the Peacock Saintess's.

But the Soul-Piercing Barbed Arrow had been nurtured for many years, its enhanced power potent enough to severely injure even this ghostly consciousness with one strike. Yet, for strategic reasons, Lan Chang'an refrained from using it.

The enhanced Barbed Arrow only allowed for three uses, and he was wary of what awaited him with the foreign cultivators from the Righteous Dao Alliance.

Instead, he opted for a gang assault, leveraging his puppets and resources to suppress the green-armored puppet. This not only conserved his trump card but also opened the possibility of capturing the puppet intact.

Lan Chang'an’s mind spun as he assessed the situation. Capturing the puppet alive would not only save him resources but could potentially provide insight into advanced puppet-crafting knowledge. From the conversation between the green-armored puppet and the city lord, it was clear that the former's skills in puppet craftsmanship were extraordinary—perhaps even surpassing the city lord’s.

"There's no need for all this wailing and gnashing of teeth. Your little tricks won’t work here. The commotion of the battle in this place cannot be perceived by the outside world," Lan Chang'an said with a half-smile.

The green-armored puppet froze. Its spiritual sense expanded cautiously, probing its surroundings.

Finally, it detected a faintly concealed fourth-rank illusion array that enveloped the area for several li.

The illusion array perfectly replicated the surrounding desert environment, blending seamlessly with the terrain. Even a Nascent Soul cultivator could overlook it if they weren’t paying close attention.

Not only did the array block all external detection of the fight, but it also disrupted any secret methods the puppet used to call for help.

Lan Chang'an had carefully prepared the environment in advance, ensuring the battle remained isolated and his techniques remained undisclosed.

"This whole transaction... you’ve been scheming from the start, haven’t you?"

The green-armored puppet’s heart sank, a feeling of humiliation and despair welling up inside.

"Scheming?"

Lan Chang'an chuckled lightly. "You’re giving yourself too much credit. I was sincere about the deal—it was you who delivered yourself into my hands."

Hearing these words, the green-armored puppet felt its consciousness tremble. A sense of suffocation overtook it, as though it might faint from anger.

Boom!

The green-armored puppet's massive frame collapsed onto the ground, its once-brilliant surface now dim and riddled with scars. The ghostly energy it relied on had been nearly exhausted.

Within its body, the puppet crystal was drained to its limits. Trapped by the relentless barrage and restraints, the quasi-fourth-rank puppet had finally lost its ability to resist.

At the same moment, the talisman formation’s glow dimmed and dissipated, its energy spent.

Lan Chang'an deftly manipulated his Braided Rope magical treasure, tying the green-armored puppet tightly before plastering it with numerous sealing talismans.

Upon closer inspection, he found that the ghost spirit consciousness within the puppet was incredibly weak. The ghostly power had corroded it to the point where it had fallen into a semi-conscious, self-sealed state to protect itself.

Lan Chang'an planted a restriction seal on the ghost spirit consciousness, ensuring that it could no longer act on its own. Satisfied, he stored the heavily restrained puppet into his storage ring.

...

Within the fourth-rank illusion array, Lan Chang'an assessed the aftermath of the battle.

The Earth Burrowing Rat had sustained minor injuries, its body still tangled with lingering ghostly energy. However, with the aid of the lightning energy and Evergreen mana, it could be healed.

The experience from this battle would also greatly enhance the combat capabilities of the Earth Burrowing Rat and the Profound Water Turtle.

The assassin puppet, on the other hand, had suffered more significant damage. Repairing it would require new materials, but compared to getting his hands on a quasi-fourth-rank puppet, the cost was negligible.

After cleaning up the battlefield, Lan Chang'an checked for any abnormalities beyond the illusion array.

Fortunately, the green-armored puppet had chased him too far, and the distance combined with the fourth-rank illusion array ensured that Mysterious Mechanism Tower had no way of tracking their fight or its outcome.

Satisfied, Lan Chang'an dismantled the temporary illusion array. This kind of movable formations lacked the raw power of sect-protecting formations of the same rank, and it mainly relied on burning spirit stones, consuming at least tens of thousands of spirit stones per battle.

On his way back, Lan Chang'an dressed up as a traveling merchant cultivator and disappeared from the area.

Even if traces of his battle were discovered by spies from other factions, they would only suspect the Azure Dragon Society’s involvement.

Other than within the confines of the illusion array, Lan Chang'an himself had not appeared in plain sight.

Two days later.

Lan Chang'an returned to Xuan Yin Pavilion through a roundabout route.

The illusionary talisman within his cave abode continued to emit his simulated aura, giving the impression that "Mister Xu" had never left the pavilion in the first place.

At that moment, Lan Chang'an sensed a disturbance in the distant Gutian Immortal City. The fragment of his past-life soul essence stored within the second-rank puppet there had naturally dissipated.

"He ran quite fast."

The feedback from the second-rank puppet revealed that as soon as Lan Chang'an captured the quasi-fourth-rank puppet, the city lord, who had been pursuing him, suddenly halted and immediately retreated to Gutian Immortal City.

It seemed the city lord, perhaps as one of the puppet’s creators, shared a partial connection with the green-armored puppet. When the puppet was subdued, this connection was severed, and the city lord realized the situation was dire.

"The Azure Dragon Society... truly mysterious. What I’ve seen so far is likely just the tip of the iceberg. I must not act recklessly.

"Alas, the Tower Lord was eroded by the energy of the Ghost Dao, and couldn't heed my advice... Fortunately, this City Lord ran fast."

The ancient city lord, now safely within the fortified walls of his city, shuddered as he ordered all defensive formations to be fully activated. Gutian Immortal City was placed on high alert, and the loss of Mysterious Mechanism Tower’s quasi-fourth-rank puppet was carefully concealed from the outside world.

...

After much deliberation, Lan Chang'an decided to let the city lord off the hook.

There were several considerations behind this decision:

First, It was impossible for him to destroy Gutian Immortal City outright. If he went against the great forces of the Outer Sect Alliance and attracted the Nascent Soul old monsters who supported them from behind the scenes, he would fall into the schemes of the Heavenly Master.

Within the Fengyuan Kingdom, Lan Chang'an always kept a cautious hand, wary of the Heavenly Master’s shadow looming over everything.

Secondly, by assigning responsibility for this incident to Azure Dragon Society, Lan Chang'an ensured that he would not implicate Xuan Yin Pavilion or people like Yun Ling. The deep-rooted fear the city lord now harbored toward Azure Dragon Society would prove advantageous.

Even if the Nascent Soul backer behind Gutian Immortal City eventually learned of this incident, they would hesitate to act rashly, wary of Azure Dragon Society’s mysterious power.

Thirdly, by eliminating Mysterious Mechanism Tower’s strongest trump card without directly conflicting with its Nascent Soul backer, Lan Chang'an’s actions would make Mysterious Mechanism Tower even more reliant on its patron. The city lord, having lost his primary weapon, would retreat into even deeper obscurity.

Any attempt to kill the city lord outright would not only be troublesome but he would also have to be concerned of the Heavenly Master and as well as the Nascent Soul cultivators behind the Outer Sect Alliance.

...

Half a month later.

Lan Chang'an began a comprehensive study of the quasi-fourth-rank puppet he had captured.

The materials and crafting techniques used to construct the puppet left him in awe. He had to admit that they far surpassed his own abilities.

Many of the puppet's components were forged from Nascent Soul-grade materials.

In terms of pure material quality, it was only 20-30% inferior to a genuine Nascent Soul-grade puppet.

In addition, the level of the puppet spirit had not yet reached fourth-rank.

“If I can fuse my fourth life with this puppet to replace the puppet spirit, its combat strength would easily rival that of a fourth-rank Demon King. And it would be much more versatile.”

Lan Chang'an marveled at the craftsmanship.

“The main framework of the puppet, the refining techniques used have reached the fourth rank! Even its supplementary components surpass peak third-rank craftsmanship.”

One discovery piqued his interest: the ghost spirit consciousness sealed within the puppet.

“Could it be that the ghost spirit was a fourth-rank puppet master in its life? No wonder its spiritual sense is so strong, even as a ghost spirit formed from a peak Core Formation soul.”

Since the ghost spirit consciousness was deeply integrated into the puppet’s systems, Lan Chang'an was unable to refine or control it while it remained dormant.

For puppets of this caliber, refining the core was the key to mastery.

“If I forcibly erase the puppet spirit, I’ll damage the puppet’s central system. The two are highly integrated, making it difficult to separate them.”

Without the expertise to repair a fourth-rank puppet core, Lan Chang'an prioritized maintaining the puppet’s integrity.

He planned to wait for the ghost spirit consciousness to awaken. Once awake, he would attempt to communicate with it—or, if necessary, perform a soul search.

Forcing a soul search while the ghost spirit was dormant would likely cause its consciousness to collapse, destroying both the spirit and the puppet.

To accelerate the recovery of the ghost spirit, Lan Chang'an placed soul-nurturing artifacts—the Soul Nurturing Bracelet and Spirit-Taming Ring—on the puppet’s frame.

Based on his calculations, the ghost spirit consciousness should awaken within a few years.

By that time, he would have returned to the Righteous Dao Alliance, far removed from Mysterious Mechanism Tower’s reach.

...

Over half a year later.

Lan Chang'an had wrapped up his affairs in the Fengyuan Kingdom and was preparing to leave.

Before departing, he informed Fairy Ni Yue and left behind several high-grade resouces which included Yun Ling's Core Formation spiritual item.

Fairy Ni Yue, having long sensed that this day would come, did not attempt to persuade him to stay.

As a parting gesture, she accompanied Lan Chang'an hand in hand to the desolate wilderness.

For three days and three nights, they indulged in their emotions and passions amidst the lonely sands of the desert.

The Fengyuan’s most beautiful woman, a peerless figure of ice and purity, surrendered her perfect body to him amidst the shifting sands, revealing an untamed, primal beauty like that of a fallen celestial maiden.

For Lan Chang'an, spiritual pursuit transcends simple physical desires. He and Fairy Ni Yue reached an integration of body and spirit as he prepared to part ways with her.

Lan Chang'an had a premonition that this parting might span countless years, so he indulged himself one last time.

If that powerful figure from the central region of Great Qing came hunting for him, Lan Chang'an would have no choice but to flee—and flee far.

There was the possibility that this might be their final meeting.

"Darling Lan, when will we meet again?"

Fairy Ni Yue, now dressed in a simple white robe, her face still glowing faintly with passion, looked at him with a melancholic expression.

She sensed that this parting was different.

Lan Chang'an had been her first man—the one to whom she had offered her once-in-a-lifetime divine art, Thousand Years Divine Dream.

Their love may not have been entirely sincere, but the years they had spent together, enduring hardships and triumphs, it was inevitable that love would grow over time.

"It’s hard to say."

Lan Chang'an shook his head. After reaching the late Core Formation stage, his sole focus was now on advancing to the Nascent Soul Realm.

As a loose cultivator with no backing, breaking through to Nascent Soul was a perilous journey fraught with danger, especially with powerful unknown enemies lurking in the shadows.

"I hope that when you ascend to Nascent Soul, you’ll still remember me... and be willing to return to Xuan Yin Pavilion."

Fairy Ni Yue’s voice trembled slightly as she gave her blessing and bid him farewell at the edge of the Righteous Dao Alliance's territory.

"If fortune allows, I will remember little Ni Yue and Xuan Yin Pavilion’s seventy-year grace," Lan Chang'an said, cupping his hands in farewell.

She watched him silently, then gave a final bow.

As the wind and sand swirled around them, they parted ways—just as they had met years ago, as ordinary Fellow Daoists.

...

Lan Chang'an rode on his flying light and flew away from the Outer Sect Alliance.

In fact, the great first that the Immortal Ni Yue had given him was the Divine Dream Kiss back then, which contributed to increasing his sense of the Great Dao and the state of his mind.

A few days later, Lan Chang'an arrived at the border of Fengyuan Kingdom, taking a circuitous route to avoid the heartlands where the Heavenly Master’s influence was strongest.

Just as the final green oasis of the borderlands was disappearing from his view, Lan Chang'an’s flight abruptly halted.

Whoosh!

In the distant desert, a fierce wind rose, and the swirling sand coalesced into a towering statue of a Daoist.

The Daoist wore pristine white robes and stood with his hands behind his back, his face abstract and angular, exuding an aura of boundless majesty as though he were one with the vast desert itself.

"Heavenly Master."

Lan Chang'an’s heart tightened. He bowed deeply in respect.

"Little friend Lan, why did you not inform me of your departure from Fengyuan Kingdom? At least allow this poor Daoist the opportunity to send you off."

The Heavenly Master’s voice was ethereal and distant, his snowy-white robes immaculate.

Whoosh!

A whirlwind of sand and dust spiraled around the two, forming a barrier that cut them off from the outside world.

No one knew what Lan Chang'an and the Heavenly Master spoke about during their private conversation.

When the conversation ended, the statue of the Heavenly Master crumbled into dust, and the whirlwind dissipated.

Lan Chang'an’s expression was unreadable as he resumed his journey, finally leaving the borders of Fengyuan Kingdom.

Half a month later.

After traversing the endless Flying Sand Desert, Lan Chang'an crossed into the Liang Kingdom’s borders.

After nearly a hundred years, he formally returned to the Righteous Dao Alliance as the Evergreen Immortal.

(End of chapter)

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