126: Chapter 126 Coming to the Door

Hao Yun picked up his teacup, gently blowing on the floating tea leaves. His face remained expressionless as he gave a faint "mm."

"Understood. You may leave."

"Yes."

The Disciple withdrew respectfully.

Only when the hall doors slowly closed did the calm on Hao Yun's face instantly vanish.

In its place was a look of vicissitude that was completely inconsistent with his age.

"Chu Xiao, Yu Chouxue, Princess Ji Ziyue... Heh, how interesting. In this life, so many names that I never heard of in my previous life have appeared, disrupting so many things."

The corners of Hao Yun's mouth curled up slightly.

No one knew.

Inside this young body of his...

...dwelled an old Soul from thousands of years in the future.

He, Hao Yun, was a Rebirth possessor!

In his previous life, he was also a Prodigy of his generation, cultivating all the way to the Returning Void Realm and becoming a titan in the entire Eastern Wasteland.

Unfortunately, in the end, while attempting to break through to the Body Integration Realm...

...a Heart Demon invaded, causing his efforts to fail and his life to end.

He thought everything was over, but to his surprise, he opened his eyes to find himself back thousands of years ago.

Back to when he was still a Core Disciple of the Yangguan Upper Sect.

After the initial shock came endless ecstasy!

What did living a second life mean?

It meant he possessed memories that were a thousand years ahead of the current era!

Those heaven-shaking opportunities that would only appear in the future...

Those ancient Legacies hidden deep within forbidden lands...

The weaknesses of those brilliant future powerhouses...

He knew them all like the back of his hand!

"Body Integration Realm... Heh, in my previous life I could Cultivate to Returning Void. In this life, with a thousand years of memory as my Foundation, the Body Integration Realm is merely my starting point!"

"

And that high-and-mighty Saintess of the Central State—in my previous life, I could only look up at you from afar. In this life, I will surely take you into my arms and make you my Dao Companion!"

Mad ambition and greed flickered in Hao Yun's eyes.

Chu Xiao?

Before a Rebirth possessor like him, he was nothing more than a clown.

No matter how strong his Luck or how many fortuitous encounters he had!

How could he compare to a prophet who knew the course of the next thousand years?

His gaze didn't linger on Chu Xiao at all.

What he truly cared about was something else.

"However, before planning for those great opportunities that haven't appeared yet, there is an excellent supplement right before my eyes that I overlooked in my previous life..."

In Hao Yun's mind, an exquisitely beautiful figure slowly emerged.

A graceful posture and an elegant temperament.

It was the Sect Master of the Tianyan Sect, Yuan Muyu.

In his previous life, the name Yuan Muyu had also been famous after he became a Returning Void old monster.

Because at some point in the future, this woman obtained a Heaven-Defying fortune, and her cultivation advanced by leaps and bounds, eventually even...

...stepping into the Returning Void Realm!

She became an empress-level figure who held great power in the Eastern Wasteland.

At that time, he was already a top existence in the Eastern Wasteland!

Naturally, he wouldn't pay attention to the specific experiences of a rising star.

But now it was different!

He had returned through Rebirth, and Yuan Muyu was still just a minor Sect Master of the Tianyan Sect, with her cultivation only at the Soul Transformation Realm.

And that heaven-shaking Opportunity that was enough to make her soar had not yet arrived!

"Yuan Muyu, oh Yuan Muyu, do you know that you yourself are a walking treasure vault?"

"In your previous life, you relied on that Opportunity to eventually achieve the position of Empress. In this life, your Opportunity, along with you as a person, will all be mine!"

Hao Yun licked his lips, his eyes full of burning heat.

As long as he obtained Yuan Muyu's primordial yin and took away the Opportunity she carried...

...it would be enough to save him a hundred years of bitter cultivation.

It would directly polish his Foundation to a state of perfect flawlessness!

As for that Chu Xiao who stayed by Yuan Muyu's side...

"Just a stone in the way."

Hao Yun gave a cold smile: "Since those fools from the Heavenly Demon Sect are willing to be the ones to stick their heads out, I'll just kick this stone aside while I'm at it in the Valley of Destiny."

In his eyes, Chu Xiao's life or death was not important at all.

What mattered was that this ant must not...

...delay him from harvesting the fruit.

...

On the flying boat of the Tianyan Sect, inside the Sect Master's bedroom.

A golden soundproofing barrier separated the inside and outside into two worlds.

Yuan Muyu leaned quietly in Chu Xiao's arms.

The pent-up anger and grievance in her heart had long since been washed away to who knows where.

In the end, she couldn't bring herself to be heartless.

She had watched this man grow step by step from a Sect Disciple into a figure who now stirred the winds and clouds of the entire Eastern Wasteland.

She had given too much for him, and she had gained too much from him.

The bond between the two had long been deeply etched into their bones.

It wasn't something that the appearance of a Yu Chouxue could sever.

She propped herself up, and the temperature in the room seemed to rise a few more degrees.

She didn't mind, simply walking to the table to pour herself a cup of spiritual tea.

"That legal decree, although it temporarily suppressed them, only treats the symptoms and not the root cause."

Yuan Muyu's voice became solemn: "The decree can only protect the Tianyan Sect, but it cannot protect you. Those people won't dare to act openly, so they will definitely use other methods."

She looked at Chu Xiao and said word by word: "Three months from now is the Eastern Wasteland's once-in-a-century Hidden Dragon Ranking selection, and the location is in the Valley of Destiny. The valley is its own world, where life and death are disregarded."

"This is both a grand gathering for the younger generation of the Eastern Wasteland and a battlefield to settle grievances."

"I can certain that as long as you go, all those forces you have offended will set up an inescapable net for you there."

"They will use every means possible to completely wipe you out in the Valley of Destiny."

She thought she would see solemnity on Chu Xiao's face, or at least a hint of vigilance.

However, Chu Xiao only smiled.

In that smile, there wasn't the slightest bit of tension; instead, it carried a... nearly cruel anticipation.

"An inescapable net? A slaughterhouse?"

He slowly sat up, leaning against the headboard with a playful look in his eyes. "That's perfect, it saves me the trouble of looking for them one by one."

"I just got something new, and I was worried I wouldn't have enough blood to sacrifice it."

Yuan Muyu was stunned. She felt a terrifying Aura from Chu Xiao that even made her heart palpitate.

It was an Aura born purely for slaughter, cold and violent, as if it could freeze one's Soul.

"You..."

"I need to enter seclusion immediately to consolidate my gains from this trip."

Chu Xiao didn't explain much, directly sitting cross-legged and slowly closing his eyes: "Help me protect my dharma."

Yuan Muyu looked at him with mixed emotions.

Once upon a time, he was still that Sect Disciple who needed her protection.

But now, he had already grown to a height that even she felt was unfathomable.

She nodded and walked to the door to personally guard him.

As Chu Xiao entered a state of cultivation, a surge of majestic and diverse energy began to rush through his body.

Those were all his gains from the trip to the Ancient Tomb of the God King.

The residual Luck plundered from killing the Son of Heavens Destiny Jiang Bai; the supreme Physique rewarded by the System—the Killing Divine Body; the most pure Yin power obtained from Yu Chouxue's Cold-Soft Body through Dual Cultivation; and the residual medicinal power of that heavenly dao essence pill...

Several forces were mixed together. If it were anyone else, they would have already died from their body exploding.

But Chu Xiao's body was like a bottomless furnace.

It began to frantically devour and refine everything.

In the next moment, a sky-piercing Killing Intent erupted from his body.

The temperature of the entire room dropped suddenly, as if it had turned into a blood hell of the nine netherworlds.

Yuan Muyu's expression changed outside the door. She immediately realized that the Opportunity Chu Xiao had obtained was absolutely extraordinary!

The slaughterhouse of the Valley of Destiny...

...for him, might truly be a blessed land!

With the support of the Killing Divine Body, the speed at which Chu Xiao refined energy suddenly increased.

The Devilish Qi and Sword Qi within his body no longer conflicted.

Instead, they were forcibly fused by an even more overbearing power.

The power belonging to Yu Chouxue turned into gentle nutrients, repairing the hidden injuries left by his successive battles.

Nourishing his Meridians and Divine Soul.

His Aura began to climb steadily at a speed visible to the naked eye!

Nascent Soul Middle Stage... Nascent Soul Late Stage... Nascent Soul Late Stage Peak!

In just one hour, his cultivation crossed two small stages, rushing directly to the summit of the Nascent Soul Realm.

He was now only one step away from the Soul Transformation Realm!

Yuan Muyu felt all this from outside the door, her beautiful eyes filled with shock.

What kind of terrifying cultivation speed was this?

How many days had passed since the Secret Realm opened?

He had soared all the way from the Nascent Soul Middle Stage to the Nascent Soul Peak!

This could no longer be described as a Genius; this was simply a monster!

Inside the room, Chu Xiao slowly opened his eyes.

Two golden divine lights flashed and vanished, and the violent Killing Intent around him also instantly retracted.

He became as calm as a deep well again.

He could feel that his strength was more than ten times stronger than before entering the Secret Realm!

Now, if he were to face that Soul Transformation Elder of the Blood Fiend Sect again, he wouldn't need a sneak attack; in a head-on battle...

...he could kill him within three moves!

"The Hidden Dragon Ranking selection, is it..."

Chu Xiao gave a light smile: "I hope you all can bring me some surprises."

He slowly stood up and pushed open the door.

Outside the door, Yuan Muyu was looking at him quietly. Besides shock and complexity, there was also a hint of infatuation in her eyes.

This man seemed to bring her a subversive understanding every single time.

...

Three days later, the Tianyan Sect's flying boat finally returned to the mountain gate.

When that huge flying boat passed through the mountain protection array and slowly landed on the main Peak's square, the entire Tianyan Sect was in a frenzy.

The Disciples who had stayed behind had already received the news and were now all gathered in the square, waiting expectantly.

When Chu Xiao's figure was the first to step off the flying boat, the mountain-shaking and sea-tsunami-like cheers instantly resounded through the clouds.

"Welcome back in triumph, Senior Brother Chu!"

"Senior Brother Chu is invincible!"

All the Disciples, regardless of gender, looked at that figure in snow-white clothes with eyes full of fanatic worship.

In the Ancient Tomb of the God King, with one person and one sword, he had suppressed all the Prodigies of the Eastern Wasteland until they couldn't lift their heads.

Killing the Demonic Path Elder, obtaining the God King's Legacy...

These deeds, one by one, had already spread throughout the entire Eastern Wasteland!

It made the Disciples of the Tianyan Sect feel proud and hold their heads several times higher.

The current Chu Xiao, in their hearts, was no longer just some Chief Disciple.

He was an existence like a god.

Chu Xiao only gave a faint smile at these cheers.

After he returned to his Immortal Cave to rest for a few days.

He went straight to the Sect Hall.

At this time, inside the hall, Yuan Muyu had changed back into her elegant and luxurious Sect Master's palace dress.

She was sitting in the main seat, handling the mountain of Sect affairs.

Seeing Chu Xiao walk in, Yuan Muyu put down the Jade Slip in her hand and rubbed her brow, her face carrying a hint of fatigue.

[part:deepseek-chat]

You seem quite at ease.

she said, giving Chu Xiao an annoyed glare.

The Sect Master has been working hard.

Chu Xiao walked to her side and very naturally picked up another Jade Slip from the table to examine.

The Jade Slip recorded the list of Cultivators applying to join the Tianyan Sect.

The names were densely packed, stretching beyond a single glance.

"Ever since you returned, our Tianyan Sect's mountain gate has nearly been trampled flat."

Yuan Muyu sighed: "Countless Loose Cultivators and scions of minor families from across the Eastern Wastelands all wish to become our Disciples. Among them are some seedlings with decent talent, but the majority are opportunists drawn by the Cultivation Techniques and reputation you brought back."

"A commoner's only crime is possessing a priceless jade."

"The Tianyan Sect now holds such great renown and possesses the vast resources you retrieved from the Secret Realm. In the eyes of others, we are a fat piece of meat."

"If we accept anyone and everyone, within a hundred years, the Sect's core would be hollowed out from within."

Chu Xiao nodded, understanding Yuan Muyu's concern.

A Sect's strength never relies on numbers, but on cohesion.

"Then add another assessment."

Chu Xiao spoke calmly.

"What kind of assessment?"

"A character assessment."

Chu Xiao set the Jade Slip down: "No matter how great their talent, those with improper character will not be accepted. Better to lack than to accept the unworthy."

Yuan Muyu looked at him and nodded: "I was thinking the same. I'll have several Elders handle this matter, ensuring those with ulterior motives are weeded out."

Having said that, she turned her gaze back to Chu Xiao, scrutinizing him carefully.

Some time ago, she had personally witnessed Chu Xiao's cultivation soar from the Middle Stage of the Nascent Soul Realm all the way to the Peak of the Nascent Soul Realm.

At the time, she was merely shocked.

But now, with Chu Xiao standing calmly before her,

she felt a sense of genuine terror.

His Aura was restrained to the extreme. Despite being at the Peak of the Nascent Soul Realm, he gave an illusion of unfathomable depth.

The solidity of his Foundation and the purity of his spiritual power far surpassed that of other Cultivators at his level by a hundredfold!

This was nothing like someone who had just made a Breakthrough!

He seemed more like an old monster who had been cultivating for centuries.

"Your cultivation... is it completely stabilized?"

Yuan Muyu's voice carried a trace of disbelief.

"Mm, not bad."

Chu Xiao replied offhandedly.

Hearing this, the corner of Yuan Muyu's mouth twitched involuntarily.

Not just 'not bad'—it was utterly inconceivable!

"So then? What brings you to find me this time?"

Yuan Muyu smiled slightly and spoke.

"What do you think?"

Chu Xiao met her gaze, a slight curve lifting the corner of his mouth!

...

Time flowed on, and the day of the Hidden Dragon Ranking selection drew ever nearer.

The entire Eastern Wastelands was enveloped in a tense atmosphere, like a storm about to break.

The imperial decree from the Liuyun Dynasty had not deterred those top-tier powers in the slightest.

On the contrary, it had further ignited their Killing Intent.

The more terrifying the potential Chu Xiao displayed, the more determined they were to strangle him in the cradle.

The Valley of Destiny was destined to become a meat grinder.

However, just as everyone's attention was focused on the upcoming Hidden Dragon Ranking selection...

In a vast, snow-covered territory...

Here was the ancestral land of the ancient Yu Family.

Within a crystal palace floating amidst the clouds...

The atmosphere was oppressive enough to drip water.

At the head of the great hall, a white-haired Elder with an Aura as deep as an abyss

was staring with an ashen face at a Family Disciple kneeling below.

"What did you say? Say it again!"

The Elder's voice was not loud, but it carried a Soul-freezing chill.

The Disciple trembled violently, replying in a shaky voice: "R... reporting to the Grand Elder, the news has been confirmed repeatedly... Young Miss Chouxue... she... in the Ancient Tomb of the God King, was... defiled... by a Loose Cultivator named Chu Xiao..."

"Boom!"

A terrifying Aura erupted violently.

The entire crystal palace shook violently.

"Bastard!!"

The white-haired Elder sprang to his feet. The supreme pressure of the Returning Void Realm distorted the surrounding space: "Our Yu Family's Cold-Soft Body! Our Yu Family's future hope!"

"To think she was defiled by some wild brat who appeared out of nowhere!"

"An unprecedented disgrace! This is an unprecedented disgrace in the tens of thousands of years since the founding of our Yu Family!"

Inside the hall, all the Yu Family higher-ups lowered their heads, not daring to make a sound.

"Where is that Chu Xiao now? And what is this Tianyan Sect?"

The white-haired Elder roared.

"The Tianyan Sect is merely a third-rate Sect... It's just... just recently, a mysterious high-ranking figure from the Liuyun Dynasty issued an imperial decree, offering the Tianyan Sect protection and forbidding anyone from touching its mountain gate."

"The Liuyun Dynasty?"

The white-haired Elder frowned, then sneered coldly, "A mere Imperial Dynasty dares to meddle in our Yu Family's affairs? They can protect the Tianyan Sect, but can they protect that little beast for a lifetime?"

His gaze shifted, landing on a young man standing respectfully below the dais. The youth was dressed in brocade robes, handsome in appearance,

but his expression was one of extreme arrogance.

"Tianheng."

"Your grandson is here."

The youth named Yu Tianheng stepped forward and bowed respectfully.

"I don't care who stands behind that Chu Xiao, nor do I care who issued that decree."

The white-haired Elder's voice was icy cold: "I will assign you three Soul Transformation Peak Protectors. You will personally go to the Tianyan Sect!"

"Find that little beast named Chu Xiao, cripple his cultivation, break his limbs, and bring him back to our Yu Family ancestral land!"

"Use his Divine Soul to light a three-thousand-year Eternal Lamp as a warning to others!"

"Furthermore, confine that disgrace Yu Chouxue to the Frozen Prison for a hundred years of reflection!"

"Your grandson obeys!"

A flicker of excitement passed through Yu Tianheng's eyes.

He had long disliked that cousin hailed as the Family's hope. Now that she had committed such a grave mistake, this was the perfect Opportunity to thoroughly crush her underfoot.

As for that Chu Xiao... a country bumpkin, daring to lay a finger on a woman of his Yu Family?

Death would be too lenient for him.

"Wait."

As if remembering something, the white-haired Elder spoke again: "To guard against any mishaps, I will have Elder Xuanbing accompany you."

As soon as the words fell, a withered, black-robed Elder, who seemed as if a gust of wind could topple him, appeared silently behind Yu Tianheng.

Seeing this Elder, Yu Tianheng's heart tightened, and he hurriedly bowed even more respectfully.

Elder Xuanbing was one of the Yu Family's true trump cards.

A terrifying existence at the second level of the Returning Void Realm!

It seemed the Family was truly unleashing its thunderous wrath this time.

"For a mere Tianyan Sect to trouble Elder Xuanbing... isn't that making a mountain out of a molehill?"

Yu Tianheng murmured softly.

The black-robed Elder didn't speak, merely letting out a sinister, cackling laugh, his voice hoarse and unpleasant.

"Even a lion uses its full strength to catch a rabbit. The Grand Elder's command cannot be wrong."

Yu Tianheng said no more, offering a deep bow to the white-haired Elder at the head of the hall.

"Please rest assured, Grand Elder. Tianheng will definitely bring those two back and wash away the disgrace of our Yu Family!"

A streak of icy-blue light shot out from the palace, streaking across the sky, speeding towards the location of the Tianyan Sect.

...

Just as that icy-blue streak from the Yu Family was speeding towards the Tianyan Sect...

Above the Tianyan Sect's mountain gate, a massive shadow descended first.

It was an ornate flying vessel crafted entirely from golden nanmu wood. Carved on its prow was a blazing sun totem—the symbol of the Yangguan Upper Sect, a top-tier power in the Eastern Wastelands.

At this moment, only two people stood upon the flying vessel.

One was a young man wearing the Core Disciple attire of the Yangguan Upper Sect, his expression calm.

This was Hao Yun, reborn and returned.

The other was a gray-robed Elder following behind him, his Aura restrained, appearing like an ordinary old servant.

Hao Yun's gaze pierced through the clouds, landing on the Sect below, shrouded by its protective mountain formation.

The corner of his mouth lifted slightly!

"Yuan Muyu, I've come."

"In my past life, you seized that Opportunity, becoming a Female Emperor who shook the world."

"In this life, all your fortunes, along with you yourself, will become the stepping stones for my Hao Yun's ascent to the Peak."

He murmured to himself, his voice filled with greed.

The gray-robed Elder behind him,

a genuine Elder of the Yangguan Upper Sect, a true powerhouse at the Middle Stage of the Soul Transformation Realm,

merely frowned slightly upon hearing this but did not inquire further.

Although Hao Yun was only a Core Disciple,

the figure standing behind him was someone even he, a Sect Elder, could not afford to offend.

Moreover, before setting out, that great figure had personally given the order

for him to follow Hao Yun's arrangements in all matters during this trip.

"Make your move, Elder."

Hao Yun withdrew his gaze and instructed calmly, "Break open this turtle shell."

"Yes."

The Grand Elder respectfully acknowledged, then stepped forward.

He raised his hand, without any earth-shattering Aura.

He simply made a plain, unremarkable downward strike with his palm.

However, the moment his palm descended,

a gigantic golden hand, formed from coalesced Spiritual Qi, materialized in the sky above the Tianyan Sect.

It blotted out the sky, carrying a terrifying pressure capable of crushing everything, and smashed down!

Boom——!

A deafening roar, as if heaven and earth were splitting apart.

The Tianyan Sect's protective mountain formation shook violently.

That layer of spiritual barrier, normally indestructible, under the impact of the golden giant hand,

resembled glass struck by a heavy hammer.

It emitted a series of teeth-grating *crack* sounds.

Cracks instantly spread across its surface!

This sudden attack

instantly alarmed the entire Tianyan Sect.

On the main Peak's plaza, Disciples who had just been greatly boosted in morale by Chu Xiao's return and were diligently cultivating

all turned deathly pale at the sound of the explosion.

"What's happening?!"

"Look at the sky! What is that?!"

The Disciples looked up. When they saw the unfamiliar flying vessel in the sky and the golden giant hand that almost completely enveloped the protective formation, panic was written all over their faces.

The Sect's alarm bell was frantically rung, its sharp sound echoing through every corner.

"Who dares trespass upon our Tianyan Sect!"

Accompanied by an angry shout, several streaks of light shot up from the direction of the Elder Hall, hovering within the protective formation.

Leading them was the Grand Elder, Ling Yun.

He looked at the Yangguan Upper Sect's flying vessel outside the formation and the gray-robed Elder upon it whose Aura was unfathomably deep.

His expression turned extremely grim.