Chapter 480: Where Have I Arrived?

Lu Yang stood frozen, his mind a tangle of questions. The number of Fusion Stage cultivators he knew was painfully small, and almost all hailed from his own sect. Among the external masters he had invited to the grand celebration, the only one he truly recognized was Su Yiren; as for the rest, they were mere names on paper.

Take the Sect Master of the Qi-Guiding Sect, who had brushed past him just moments ago—Lu Yang had not even recognized him.

The newly acquired Directory of the Great Xia Dynasty’s Fusion Stage Cultivators did contain brief descriptions and portraits of each figure, but Lu Yang had been so thoroughly engrossed in wandering the bustling streets that he had yet to find the time to glance through it.

Unlike the utterly unreliable Immortal Fairy, the Eldest Senior Sister’s words carried immense weight and certainty, forcing Lu Yang to treat the matter with the utmost seriousness.

“Could they be reclusive Fusion Stage cultivators?”

Like Su Yiren, those who lived hidden from the world possessed an incredibly faint presence, and few within the cultivation realm would ever recognize them.

The Eldest Senior Sister shook her head, dismissing the possibility entirely. “I know the vast majority of the world’s reclusive Fusion Stage masters. It is simply impossible for all those I have never met to happen to gather here at once.”

Lu Yang knit his brows in deep thought. Looked at this way, the situation was bizarre; why had so many Fusion Stage cultivators suddenly appeared, and were they friends or foes?

If they were enemies?

To launch an assault on the Invincible Sect required a level of foolishness that even a kick from a donkey could not induce.

If they were friends?

Then why had they arrived uninvited, slipping in without a word?

Lu Yang found himself entirely unable to comprehend the logic of these Fusion Stage masters.

“It is not just the Fusion Stage; there are also three or four in the Tribulation Transmutation Stage, all of them unfamiliar faces,” Yun Zhi added suddenly, her voice calm yet chilling.

Lu Yang’s heart skipped a beat; if that were true, the matter was of staggering importance.

“Should we capture them and interrogate them?” Lu Yang proposed, reasoning that even if they captured the wrong person, he, as the acting sect master, could simply offer a formal apology.

“Very well.” Yun Zhi nodded, Lu Yang’s suggestion aligning perfectly with her own thoughts.

A simple wooden sign suddenly blocked their path.

Carved into the wood were the words: Please hold your breath before proceeding forward.

“There was no such sign when we walked past earlier, was there?” Lu Yang muttered, bewildered, as the two of them had nearly completed a full circuit of the area.

“It was placed by the Sixth Elder.” Yun Zhi had clearly encountered this sign before, recognizing the Sixth Elder’s handiwork at a single glance.

Lu Yang understood instantly; that explained everything perfectly.

Those privileged enough to attend the celebration were either peerless geniuses or supreme paragons of cultivation; holding one's breath required but a single thought and cost no effort at all.

The Sixth Elder’s arrival had not caused any significant stir.

Before long, the duo caught sight of the Sixth Elder, positioned in a deeply familiar spot—the very place where Luo Hongxia usually sat angling for fish.

Luo Hongxia and the Sixth Elder were intimate friends, and they were taking full advantage of the celebration to enjoy a quiet chat.

Though they remained silent, the relaxed expressions on their countenances suggested their conversation was exceedingly pleasant.

Lan Ting and Tao Yaoye followed closely behind their respective masters, communicating silently through their divine senses.

“Palace Master Luo.”

“Daoist Friend Yun.”

The two women cupped their hands in mutual greeting.

“Lu Yang, it has been a long time since we parted ways in Qingzhou,” Lan Ting greeted him warmly, her eyes crinkling with a smile.

“Junior Sister Lan Ting, you know Junior Sister Tao?” Lu Yang noted the radiant smiles gracing both their faces; they looked exceptionally beautiful, and their relationship seemed remarkably close.

Both possessed immortal physiques, so perhaps they shared much in common.

“I had long heard from my master that Palace Master Luo had taken in a junior sister of peerless talent, one who is by no means inferior to me. Today, I finally meet her.” Tao Yaoye stepped forward and took Lan Ting’s hand, subtly shifting her stance to place a deliberate distance between Lu Yang and Lan Ting.

Lan Ting readily chimed in, her voice soft and delicate. “Junior Sister Tao and I felt an instant bond upon our very first meeting. She even expressed a desire to use my likeness to perform her Phantasmal Bubble.”

Tao Yaoye let out a soft laugh, gently swaying Lan Ting’s arm. “I have always wished to employ the likeness of a truly beautiful cultivator within the Phantasmal Bubble. Seeing Junior Sister Lan Ting today, I am utterly spellbound; that the world holds such a beauty is a marvel, and she is perfect for the Phantasmal Bubble.”

“What beauty do you speak of? Junior Sister Tao is far more striking than I. The only thing I can truly take pride in is my cultivation level.”

Lu Yang sensed a subtle undercurrent in the atmosphere, yet he could not quite fathom its source, leaving him temporarily speechless.

Yun Zhi noticed the Light-Imprisoning Treasure Box resting at Luo Hongxia’s feet and inquired, “I wonder what purpose Palace Master Luo had for bringing out the treasure box, and whether the matter has been concluded?”

Luo Hongxia reflected for a brief moment; almost all the ancient elders of the cultivation world she recognized were already locked securely inside the box, so her task was essentially finished.

“It is done.”

“I wonder if I might borrow it for a moment?”

With the Light-Imprisoning Treasure Box in hand, it would be the perfect tool to round up those unfamiliar Fusion Stage and Tribulation Transmutation Stage cultivators.

“This…”

Luo Hongxia’s expression turned hesitant; though the Light-Imprisoning Treasure Box was a supreme treasure of the Laurel Xian Palace, borrowing such items among the Five Great Immortal Sects was commonplace, making it difficult to use that as an excuse to decline.

Furthermore, Luo Hongxia felt a pang of guilt; they were on the Invincible Sect’s territory, yet they had locked away all the attending masters inside the box. If word of this spread, it would bring dishonor to the Invincible Sect's name.

Worse still, Yun Zhi was standing right before her, and it was far too late to release the prisoners now.

Unable to conjure a valid reason to refuse, she had no choice but to yield the treasure box.

“My thanks to Palace Master Luo.” Yun Zhi offered a polite gesture, and with a slight flick of her finger, the treasure box rose from the ground and floated toward her.

“Little Junior Brother, let us go.”

Hearing the Eldest Senior Sister’s call, Lu Yang let out a sigh of relief, hastily bidding farewell to the two maidens before hurrying to catch up.

Perfected Lord Wangyue was crouching before a market stall, staring contemplatively at the wares on display.

He had been ordered by the State Preceptor to investigate the state of the celebration, never expecting to stumble upon an unexpected harvest.

“Are you interested in this?” The stall owner was an elderly man who resembled a simple, rustic farmer. He smiled warmly as he picked up an old book from the counter.

“This ancient text was unearthed from a certain hidden realm. It details an entity known as the Hundred Herbs Heavenly King of the Heavenly Court Sect. If you fancy it, I shall part with it for eight hundred thousand spirit stones!”

Perfected Lord Wangyue’s interest was instantly piqued; the State Preceptor was currently deeply vexed by the sudden emergence of the Heavenly Court Sect, and to find a clue regarding them here was a magnificent achievement.

For a Fusion Stage master, eight hundred thousand spirit stones was hardly an exorbitant sum.

He harbored no fear of the item being a counterfeit; this was, after all, the domain of the Invincible Sect, and surely no one would dare peddle fake goods here, as that would be a direct insult to the sect's honor.

“I will take it!”

Without a second thought, Perfected Lord Wangyue tapped his storage ring against the old man's, transferring the eight hundred thousand spirit stones instantly.

Just as his hand reached out to claim the book, a brilliant beam of light enveloped him, drawing him directly into the treasure box.

A soft thud echoed.

The ancient book slipped from his fingers and fell to the ground.

“Martial Niece Yun, what is the meaning of this…” Grandfather Ba looked at Yun Zhi with mild astonishment.

“The Eldest Senior Sister wishes to question him regarding the situation,” Lu Yang answered dutifully on Yun Zhi’s behalf, acting as her faithful attendant.

Perfected Lord Wangyue stared blankly at his surroundings, utterly unable to comprehend what had just transpired.

He had been in the middle of purchasing a book, so how on earth had he ended up in this place?

And why were there so many people gathered here?

He watched as two great cultivators approached him with sinister grins, rubbing their hands together in anticipation, while a kindly, gentle old monk radiated an overwhelming aura of pure slaughter.

Further away was a crowd of great cultivators, black and blue, groaning and wailing upon the ground—a sound that made a shiver run down his spine.

Where on earth had he stumbled into?

"I don't recognize him. Who is that?" Qiu Jin'an hesitated; he had never set eyes on True Monarch Wangyue before.

"Who cares? Since Fellow Daoist Luo let him in, he must have come to mock us. We certainly won't be in the wrong if we give him a beating!" Yang Ding offered a brief analysis and reached a conclusion.

"Makes sense."

The second update will be before eleven o'clock