At the same time, Fairy Nishang, passing by a barren mountain, furrowed her delicate brows slightly. She paused for a moment, gazed toward the desolate hills, and felt a faint surge of unease in her heart.
"Did I miss something?"
After murmuring softly to herself, driven by a cultivator's spiritual perception of impending danger, Fairy Nishang departed at top speed.
Although she was already a Core Formation Cultivator in the Tiannan Immortal Cultivation World, and the Moon Masking Sect was the preeminent sect in the Yue Cultivation World, whatever could make her feel such danger was definitely not simple.
A cultivator's spiritual sense regarding danger is extremely accurate. Once it appeared, Fairy Nishang dared not be careless and chose to return to the Moon Masking Sect at maximum speed.
Even if she wanted to investigate, she would have to bring a powerful companion; investigating alone would leave her with no room for regret should an accident occur.
As for a companion, naturally it would not be Nanrong Wan, but rather Old Man Qiong, the undisputed strongest figure below the Nascent Soul stage in the Yue Cultivation World.
There was no one more suitable than Old Man Qiong.
...
"Running away really fast. Could she have noticed something?"
Just as Fairy Nishang's stream of light vanished into the endless horizon, a figure materialized atop the barren mountain.
It was a grim-faced, gray-haired elder. He looked in the direction Fairy Nishang had fled, his gaze carrying a hint of burning intensity.
"It seems I'll have to change locations. I never expected Yan Family Fortress to produce two Heavenly Spiritual Root cultivators and even betroth them. I wonder if that's a blessing or a curse. Haha."
The elder let out a strange laugh, clearly aware of something.
...
Yan Taihai naturally knew nothing of what had transpired outside Yan Family Fortress, for in the past six years, he had not stepped out of the fortress even once.
Yan Family Fortress provided everything he needed. Had it not been for the fact that the fortress could at most support him up to Core Formation, he wouldn't have minded staying there for the rest of his life to cultivate in peace.
Unfortunately, in a year or two at most, he would have to head to the Moon Masking Sect for cultivation.
This was something no one could change.
Yet heading to the Moon Masking Sect to cultivate was not necessarily a bad thing; it would allow him to elevate his strength as quickly as possible.
After all, he possessed a Metal Heavenly Spiritual Root and was a disciple of Old Man Qiong. Even with his background in Yan Family Fortress, he would not face any deliberate harassment.
Presumably, no one would give him the opportunity to be slapped in the face either, leaving him free to cultivate quietly.
However, there was another matter that gave Yan Taihai quite a headache: the future trajectory of Yan Family Fortress.
If not for his little fiancée, Yan Ruyan, choosing the Ghost Spirit Sect would undoubtedly have been the wisest decision for Yan Family Fortress.
Even though the Wang family of the Ghost Spirit Sect would later move against the Yan family because Yan Ruyan achieved Nascent Soul condensation while Wang Chan failed, they ultimately avoided a backlash; the Ghost Spirit Sect fell into the hands of the Yan family and was replaced by them.
Now that he was aware of this plot development, he would naturally find a way to avoid it.
Yet with the addition of his little fiancée Yan Ruyan, Yan Taihai was left with only a single choice: butcher Wang Chan, the young master of the Ghost Spirit Sect, annihilate the Wang family, and wipe out the entire Ghost Spirit Sect.
Dare to steal his wife, and no one could save them!
His word was law.
Though this wife of his was still a little toddler at present, she was his wife nonetheless.
Therefore, Yan Taihai had to redouble his efforts in cultivation. According to his calculations, he still had over a decade left.
With such a long time, let alone reaching Foundation Establishment, as long as he could complete the Immortal Cultivation Simulation tasks as soon as possible, there was even hope for Core Formation.
By then, he would be able to alter the destiny of the Yan family.
In particular, Yan Taihai was well aware that the Yan family had one final option: the Chaotic Star Sea.
Once he found the ancient teleportation array, he could choose to head to the Chaotic Star Sea, thereby avoiding the impending war of invasion waged by the Righteous and Demonic Paths across various nations in Tiannan, securing a firm foothold for himself.
Although the Chaotic Star Sea was far more chaotic than Tiannan, it differed from the Tiannan Immortal Cultivation World in at least one major aspect: the gap in resources regarding spiritual lands and monster beast core materials was simply massive.
In the Tiannan Immortal Cultivation World, let alone blessed spiritual mountains with spirit veins like Yan Family Fortress and the Seven Sects of Yue Country, even places with slightly concentrated ambient spiritual Qi already had owners.
The Chaotic Star Sea was different. Not only did it boast numerous unclaimed islands, but it also held an inexhaustible supply of monster beasts.
Whether it was monster beast cores, pelts, bones, or other materials, they constituted an irresistible temptation for any immortal cultivation family.
The Yan family was able to become the premier immortal cultivation family in Yue Country precisely because their intrinsic strength was second only to the Seven Sects of Yue Country. The family had more than just the Yan Family Ancestor at the Core Formation stage; there were other Core Formation cultivators as well, though few knew of them.
Yan Taihai even suspected they had not achieved Core Formation within Yan Family Fortress to avoid discovery and growing wariness from the Seven Sects.
Therefore, with the Yan family's strength, he believed that if they entered the Chaotic Star Sea, they would quickly secure an island of their own, and with that foothold, they could develop even better.
Regardless of their motives, the Yan family had treated him exceptionally well over the years, granting almost every request. Aside from failing to treat medicinal pills like jellybeans, they had satisfied practically everything else.
They had even gifted a Foundation Establishment Pill to his maternal aunt, Yan Yun. Naturally, Yan Taihai held considerable affection for the Yan family.
Once his strength was sufficient and he found the ancient teleportation array and the Great Teleportation Token, he would see what path the Yan family chose.
If their choice satisfied him, he wouldn't mind bestowing upon the Yan family a fortune as vast as the Chaotic Star Sea.
If they disappointed him, they could blame no one but himself.
He always remembered what Old Man Qiong had told him: the Yan family was not as simple as it appeared on the surface.
Of course, that was stating the obvious; if the Yan family had been even slightly weaker, the Seven Sects of Yue Country would have devoured them down to the bones long ago.
One must remember that among the immortal cultivation families of the Yue Cultivation World, the Yan family was the only one possessing cultivators at or above the Foundation Establishment stage that had never formally declared allegiance to or dependence on the Seven Sects of Yue Country.
Other immortal cultivation families did not refuse to submit to the Seven Sects; rather, their strength was too meager, lacking even a Foundation Establishment cultivator or someone at the peak of the 13th Layer of Qi Condensation, rendering them unworthy of the Seven Sects' notice.
But Yan Family Fortress was different. Especially after reading so many books, Yan Taihai had managed to perceive certain clues hidden within the texts.
Yet that was the extent of it; the Yan family still harbored deep suspicions toward him.
...
"Find a way to sneak into Yan Family Fortress and eliminate that little fellow with the Metal Heavenly Spiritual Root. Complete the task assigned by the Sect Master. The heavenly spiritual root of that young lady from the Yan family is of vital importance to the Young Master, and absolutely no mistakes are permitted."
In the desolate mountains, the elder instructed two figures, a man and a woman, standing behind him.
Both were Foundation Establishment cultivators.
"Elder, Yan Family Fortress has barred all outsiders from entering for years and no longer takes in mortals or rogue cultivators. How are we supposed to sneak in?"
Asked the man with a grim expression.
He had been the one responsible for scouting the situation at Yan Family Fortress these past few days, so he was naturally the most familiar with the difficulties.
"I don't care about that. But if you fail the mission, you know the consequences."
The elder waved his hand impatiently and gave his order.