Chapter 5.3
Early the next morning, all the disciples under Daoist Dao Ming, even Dao Xiuzi who had risen to be one of the 3rd generation and Ling Yuanzi who had been in closed door cultivation, gathered at Cloudstroke Plains.
“Eldest Senior Brother, oh, no, Uncle-Master Dao Xiu, this time, our Cloudstroke Peak will be able to gain some glory! Your one of the youngest experts of the 4th Generation that has already risen to the 3rd! A rare occurrence in the past 100 years one might even say” The one who spoke was the 3rd of the 4th Generation, Ling Yuanzi, and while he looked silly and slow, his tongue was extremely glib. When Hai Long had first seen him, he almost laughed out loud, because Ling Yuanzi’s appearance was like a goose that the Zhang Hao family had reared back at the village. Later on, Ling Yuzi had told him secretly, that it was not wise to judge Ling Yuanzi based on his appearance, because he was the smartest, and many of the fellow disciples were unwilling to exchange pointers with him. His cultivation had reached a decent point, having achieved the Early Insight Stage.
Dao Xiu obviously disliked this 3rd Junior Brother of his, as he replied mildly: “3rd Brother, it’s still better for you to call me Senior Brother, otherwise, it will feel odd for me.”
Ling Wise smiled lightly, and said: “Time’s not going to stop for us, let us depart. Otherwise, our esteemed Master would have to wait for us.” Everyone nodded. Currently, Daoist Dao Xiu’s cultivation was the highest, and because the distance from Cloudstroke Peak to Heaventake Peak was extremely far, adding on to the fact that he had just reached the stage where he didn’t need to rely on a flying sword to travel and he hadn’t stabilized his form, Daoist Dao Xiu had borrowed the Seven Construct Sword that he gave to Hai Long. He used his qi to control the sword, and brought along Hai Long as he flew in front. This was the umpteenth time that Hai Long had flown on flying swords, and by now, not only was he not afraid, instead, he could feel the excitement and rush.
The journey from the mountain side to the peak was just a blink of an eye, while Daoist Dao Ming, whom Hai Long had just seen yesterday, was currently in a grey robe, and was waiting for them at the peak. Upon seeing his disciples arriving, not a single one was missing as they rushed over. He didn’t say much, instead calling out mildly: “Let’s go to Heaventake Peak.” After which, without any action from him, a green light appeared behind his back, and he started floating, landing on his own flying sword. As the light flashed, he swiftly flew towards the distance.
There were countless clouds covering the skies, surrounding the various mountain peaks. Even when there were no clouds, one could only see a few greyish green mountain peaks. Beneath their feet, there was a sea of clouds, and everyone present would shoot through the clouds with green lights radiating behind them, looking like true immortals.
With the flow of time, the differences between the cultivation of everyone became clear, after flying at a fast speed for over 10 minutes, Daoist Dao Ming showed no sign of fatigue, carrying on as though nothing had changed. Daoist Dao Xiu, Ling Wise, and Ling Yuanzi were all extremely relaxed as well. As for Ling Yuzi and a few of the other disciples who were of a lower cultivation, they began to feel the stress of the long flight.
Ling Wise and Dao Xiu exchanged a look, both of them channeling their qi, and covering the weaker junior brothers. With their help, Ling Yuzi and the rest regained some stability.
“Do not help them. Are you going to a.s.sist them for an entire lifetime?” Daoist Dao Ming’s voice coolly transmitted over, “Only when there’s danger, then one would be able to achieve a breakthrough. Otherwise the daily mundane hard work would only reveal itself through comprehension. While the going might be tough now, the fruits will be revealed in the future. Without experiencing the tough difficulties, how could they appreciate and truly understand the true importance of cultivation?”
Hearing those words from Daoist Dao Ming, the disciples seemed to gain enlightenment. Dao Xiu and Ling Wise dispersed their qi, and the rest channeled their qi to the maximum, with just a few simple words, Daoist Dao Ming had imparted a valuable lesson to all his disciples.
Although Daoist Dao Xiu and Ling Wise weren’t going to help their fellow disciples, they held their speed back, intending to a.s.sist the moment there was danger, at least this way they would be able to react in time.
Soon, they broke past a particularly thick patch of clouds, and the Heaventake Peak that seemed to be suspended in the sky appeared on the horizon, and when compared to the rest of the peaks, they seemed like insignificant dots in the distance.
Dao Xiu continued to keep an eye on his fellow disciples who were nearing their limit, as he transmitted to Hai Long: “This is Heaventake Peak, and is the main base of our Cloudlink Sect. Look, all the disciples from the other peaks are all rushing over here.” While the mountain peak in the distance still looked illusionary, Hai Long looked everywhere, and noticed that as per Dao Xiu’s words, there were numerous green beams of light shooting towards Heaventake Peak.
Under Daoist Dao Ming’s direction, Dao Xiu and Ling Wise pushed their qi to support the rest of the brothers as they neared the peak. They had finally reached their destination.
On Heaventake Peak, the bustling and interesting scenes that Hai Long had been antic.i.p.ating finally revealed themselves. There was a wide open s.p.a.ce in front of him, and the ground seemed to be made of bluestone, but it didn’t seem to be ordinary bluestone as well, because there were faint traces of radiant light that swirled about. The wide blue sky seemed to be at their fingertips, and if one were to raise his head, the sapphire-blue like zenith seemed to spread for eternity, and the boundless feeling made one’s eyes open in wonder. There were no clouds or fog, and the temperature seemed to be much lower here. On the wide open s.p.a.ce, there were many benches that were made out of a similar material as the grounds, and everything seemed simple, with only a few decorations here and there. From Hai Long’s point of view, it seemed as though he had just entered an immortal plane, and everything seemed like it was out of a dream.
Dao Xiu smiled lightly, and explained: “This here is the Heaventake Square, and it was the the tireless efforts, blood and sweat of the Founder that made it possible.”
There were currently over 200 people on the Square, and different groups had gathered as they engaged in conversation.
Dao Xiu pointed to the far end of the Square, and said: “Look over there.” Hai Long followed the direction of his finger, and was momentarily stunned. In the distance, there was a 7-coloured misty dimension, and it was glowing there peacefully, depicting a scene of the most beautiful and amazing place wrapped into a ball, pulsating as a great ball of light.
“So beautiful! Eldest Uncle-Master, what’s that place? How come there’s a 7-coloured glow around it?”
Dao Xiu did not directly answer Hai Long, instead replying mildly: “This Heaventake Square of the Heaventake Peak, is a sacred ground belonging only to the Sect Masters. The Heaventake Square spans over 10,000m, and the spiritual qi here is even higher than that of all the 72 peaks of the Cloudlink Sect combined. It’s considered as one of the 4 greatest Immortal sites, and has been conferred the t.i.tle of Heaventake Sacred Grounds. The 7-coloured dimension is the Heaventake Palace of our founder, which only the esteemed Sect Masters can enter. There are some statues of the various Sect Masters over the generations contained within, as well as some sacred books.”
Hai Long asked dubiously: “Eldest Uncle-Master, since only the Founder could go in, how come you know so much? Don’t tell me… you have entered before?!”
Dao Xiu almost choked on his own saliva and died, as he coughed hastily, suppressing the embarra.s.sment welling up in his heart, and reprimanded: “This is the sacred grounds of our Sect, how could I have entered. Don’t spout nonsense, lest you cause trouble for me. I heard this from Master.” Hai Long stepped forcefully on the bluestone ground, as he chuckled: “Okay, okay, I won’t say it then… Hey, aren’t those Junior-Masters Ling Feizi and the rest?”
The beautiful Ling Feizi was extremely eye-catching amongst the various disciples, and Hai Long had caught sight of her silhouette at the first moment. Beside her, Ling Yazi, Ling Yingzi and Ling Muzi were all present. The lady currently leading them was a very ordinary looking female cultivator. Her clothes were like Daoist Dao Ming, and she was precisely the master of Ling Feizi and the rest, Daoist Dao Yun. When Hai Long saw Ling Feizi, she also caught sight of him. In her mind, Hai Long was just a mischievous kid, and after glancing at him, she didn’t show any other indication.
Ling Feizi’s careless look was still captivating to Hai Long. His heart seemed to heat up, and he wanted to go over to strike up a conversation with her. However, who would have thought, just as he was about to take a step, he found that his body was frozen in place. Daoist Dao Ming’s voice sounded in his ear, asking: “Tan Yu, how did you come to know Ling Feizi?”
Hai Long was stunned momentarily, before he replied subconsciously: “Previously, Junior-Master Ling Feizi and the rest had come over to Cloudstroke Plains to exchange for the Ninglu Gel, that’s how I knew them.” His entire body became lighter, and he recovered his mobility. He turned his head around, only to see Daoist Dao Ming’s face turning dark, and Ling Yunzi and the rest had lowered their head as though they had done something wrong. Hai Long gulped, and knew that he had accidentally let it slip without meaning to.