Three years had passed in the blink of an eye.
Jiang Runyue practiced with unremitting diligence, just as she always had.
She spent her days practicing the spear, the sword, and various arts, and her nights in seated meditation. On the first and fifteenth day of every lunar month, she went to Yaotai Wonderland to attend a private lecture personally taught by the Earth Immortal, True Monarch Ruiying.
"I am so eager to make progress!"
As the morning sun rose, Jiang Runyue's spear flashed like a dragon, her heroic bearing on full display as her figure filled the training ground.
Not far away, True Monarch Ruiying stood watching her with a warm smile, her slightly clouded eyes brimming with gratification and a trace of nostalgia for the past.
Since ancient times, beauties lament the passing of their youth, just as heroes are never allowed to grow old with white hair!
Cast your mind back to the days when she was the peerless Fairy Ruiying, wielding her Divine Taiyin Saber and the Crescent Immortal Bracelet, hailed as invincible beneath the Earth Immortal realm.
Yet, no matter how extraordinary your talent or how breathtaking your beauty, you could not withstand the ravages of time. The Divine Taiyin Saber had lost its keen edge, the Crescent Immortal Bracelet had been given away to another, and the former fairy had been reduced to a withered, aged crone with wrinkled skin and crane-white hair.
Although Earth Immortal cultivators enjoyed boundless lifespans, they were not truly immortal. If their cultivation and spiritual attainment failed to advance further, their physical bodies would still gradually age and decay.
"Immortal and unaging?"
"Hahaha..."
A trace of contempt appeared on True Monarch Ruiying's face, her laughter carrying a cold disdain.
The Taiyin Sect possessed secret arts capable of preserving youth, extending one's lifespan, and even achieving Possession and rebirth. Yet deep within her heart, she possessed her own pride and principles; even when facing death and decay, she refused to stoop to such sordid methods.
"My child, stop for a moment!"
True Monarch Ruiying smiled and beckoned, calling a halt to Jiang Runyue, who was still practicing her spear techniques.
Naturally, she could see that her precious disciple's mastery of the spear was not the least bit inferior to her swordplay.
In particular, that indomitable, unstoppable, sharp, and arrogantly soaring spear intent was completely different from the well-behaved persona she usually projected.
Jiang Runyue put away her long spear, hurried over to True Monarch Ruiying, and bowed deeply. "Greetings, Master!"
"Three years have already passed, and the Taiyin Secret Realm will open in half a year. Go pack your bags and accompany Cui Dongli and Fang Baiyu to Taiyin Divine Mountain!"
Cui Dongli and Fang Baiyu were the two most outstanding core disciples of the Moon Palace lineage. Their cultivation and spiritual attainments were exceptionally profound, falling not the slightest bit short of the other two lineages.
Hearing this, Jiang Runyue was taken aback. "So soon?"
"Hahaha..."
True Monarch Ruiying laughed heartily. "Haven't you always wanted to go to East Tianzhou? The opening of the Taiyin Secret Realm this time will fulfill your wish!"
"But..." Jiang Runyue hesitated slightly.
"Do not act like a timid little girl. Those of us who walk the path of cultivation know no fear; why would we care about ordinary parting sorrows and joys?"
True Monarch Ruiying said with haughty pride, "Our Moon Palace lineage does not go looking for trouble, but neither are we afraid of it. Once you reach the main sect in East Tianzhou, if any blind fools dare to make things difficult for you, just strike back as you please. This master will cover you for everything!"
"Master, this disciple... this disciple has been gentle, courteous, and well-read since childhood, and rarely gets into disputes with others!"
Jiang Runyue lowered her gaze and offered a shy smile.
"Gentle and courteous? Well-read?"
True Monarch Ruiying muttered under her breath, instantly struck by a sense of absurdity.
"Were you about to tell me that you prefer to win people over with virtue?"
Jiang Runyue's smile froze at those words. That was indeed what she had been about to say—how had her master guessed it first?
"Hurry up and pack your bags! I don't know how many times I've heard these lines. Win people over with virtue, you? You're more likely to win them over with a spear!"
"Um..." Jiang Runyue scratched her head, offered an awkward smile and a bow, and then hurried away from the training ground.
Watching her walk away, True Monarch Ruiying smiled bitterly and shook her head. The more she interacted with this disciple, the more she felt that both her personality and disposition were almost identical to her own younger self.
The only difference was that her innate talent and aptitude were far superior to her own, and her fortune was likewise vastly greater.
"Perhaps she will one day reach... that supreme realm which even Ancestor Changxi failed to attain!"
True Monarch Ruiying withdrew her gaze with a soft sigh, turned quietly, and departed.
Over the past three years, she had imparted all her lifelong mastery to her youngest disciple without the slightest bit of concealment or reservation, simply because Jiang Runyue was her true successor.
Yet a master might lead you through the door, but your cultivation depended entirely on yourself. How much of it her youngest disciple could truly absorb was no longer something she could decide.
"Good disciple, the road ahead to East Tianzhou is long and distant. I hope you can carve out your own brilliant future!"
With those words, True Monarch Ruiying left the Hall of Cold Souls and returned to her residence in Yaotai Wonderland.
On the other side, after packing her bags, Jiang Runyue set off for the Chanjuan Palace to find Fang Baiyu.
The Moon Palace lineage of the Taiyin Sect was not particularly flourishing; from the sect master True Monarch Ruiying down to the newly entered Qi Refining Realm disciples, there were only around ten thousand people in total, falling far short of the Taiyin Divine Mountain and Xuyu Immortal Island lineages.
The Chanjuan Palace was the residence of Senior Sister Fang Baiyu. She was one of the few friends in the Moon Palace to whom Jiang Runyue could open her heart—humble, cautious, approachable, gentle, considerate, and well-read.
"Senior Sister!"
Jiang Runyue rushed breathlessly into the Chanjuan Palace to find Fang Baiyu still reading, maintaining her leisurely, unhurried, and gentle demeanor.
"Junior Sister Guanghan..."
Seeing her, Fang Baiyu's eyes lit up. She smiled faintly and said, "You ran in here in such a rush—could it be that some ferocious beast was chasing after you?"
"Master told me to find you and Senior Brother Cui so we can travel together to the East Tianzhou main sect!"
"She's actually willing to let you go out?"
Fang Baiyu leisurely put down her book, took Jiang Runyue by the hand, looked her up and down, and teased with a smile, "Little Junior Sister, you're not a child anymore—how come there's still no sign of growth up here?"
Jiang Runyue's face flushed with embarrassment, and she quickly defended herself, "I think it's quite nice! Without those two burdensome lumps, I feel so much lighter!"
"Hehe, no wonder you like dressing as a man. Such a handsome and tender 'young master'—once we get to Taiyin Divine Mountain, who knows how many senior and junior sisters you'll charm?"
As she spoke, Fang Baiyu even reached out to stroke her cheek.
The corners of Jiang Runyue's mouth curled upward slightly, her two sword-like eyebrows arching upward to give her an even more striking and heroic appearance.
"Tsk tsk!"
Fang Baiyu clicked her tongue in wonder.
Clearly possessing exquisite and refined facial features as pure as a lotus rising from the water, her junior sister would undoubtedly become the center of attention the moment she put on women's clothing. Yet she showed not the slightest interest in those gorgeous and dazzling feminine garments.
Instead, she favored simple, unadorned men's clothing, often appearing before others with a vigorous and dashing bearing.
What kind of strange hobby was this?
"Let's go!"
Fang Baiyu let go of Jiang Runyue, stood up, and led her out of the Chanjuan Palace, heading together toward another destination: the Yuchan Palace.
Second Senior Brother Cui Dongli had been waiting for some time.
"Yuchan greets Senior Sister Chanjuan and Junior Sister Guanghan!"
Cui Dongli, whose Daoist name was Yuchan, stood nine feet tall with a magnificent appearance. Keeping his hands tucked inside his moon-white sleeves, his smile was warm and cheerful, looking nothing like someone who had lived for hundreds of years.
"Sorry to have kept Junior Brother Yuchan waiting so long!"
A faint smile hung on Fang Baiyu's face.
Jiang Runyue simply smiled, cupped her fists gracefully in return, and gave a proper greeting.
"Let's go. Opening the teleportation formation is no easy task; we should make our way over as quickly as possible!"
With that, the three of them set off together toward the Binglun Palace.
The teleportation formation between the Moon Palace and Taiyin Divine Mountain was set up within the expansive grounds of the Binglun Palace.
A quarter of an hour later.
"So this is the teleportation formation?"
Inside the grand Binglun Hall, Jiang Runyue muttered to herself as she gazed at the structure in the distance, which could only be described as the work of gods and demons.