And so, Upper Immortal Yuanwu and that Upper Demon Beast remained locked in a stalemate, one unleashing the Creation of the Great Sun Radiance, the other the Creation of the Dark Radiant Moon. They were locked in a contest of wills, neither able to gain the upper hand.
Mo Baiyu, Yunzhou, Mufeng, and the other Upper Immortals stood quietly beside Yuanwu, neither intervening nor attempting to dissuade him.
On the opposite side, beside that Upper Demon Beast, Fuying continued to watch with a faint, silent smile. The curve of his lips, accentuated by his handsome features, seemed increasingly sinister.
Suddenly.
"I wonder if the two of you could grant Bai a favor and cease this conflict."
A voice rang out, shattering the tense atmosphere.
Everyone turned to look.
They saw four figures flying over from Upper Immortal Qingqing's grand vessel.
It was two men, along with a stunningly beautiful woman. Beside the beautiful woman followed an elderly woman and a mischievous-looking young girl.
The appearance of these four caused the expressions of everyone present—whether Mo Baiyu, Yunzhou, and the other Upper Immortals, or the Upper Demon Beast opposite, and even Fuying, who bore two decrees—to shift repeatedly.
They all recognized these four.
The two men leading the group were also Upper Immortals bearing the mandate of the Immortal Dao.
One was named Bai Ze, the other Leng Jue.
If they were merely ordinary Upper Immortals, they naturally wouldn't have elicited such a strong reaction from Mo Baiyu, Yunzhou, or even Fuying.
The problem was that neither Bai Ze nor Leng Jue were ordinary Upper Immortals.
Bai Ze, like Upper Immortal Qingqing, was a disciple of Eternal Life Pavilion.
This identity alone meant that even if Bai Ze weren't an Upper Immortal bearing the Immortal Dao's mandate, his status as a disciple of Eternal Life Pavilion was something no one present dared to provoke or could afford to offend—including Fuying, who bore two decrees.
Because within the Great Desolate, the status of Eternal Life Pavilion transcended that of any Great Immortal Sect or great family.
As for Leng Jue, though he wasn't a disciple of Eternal Life Pavilion, he was a disciple of Dan Ding Valley.
And Dan Ding Valley, like Eternal Life Pavilion, was one of the seventy-two Blessed Lands renowned throughout the Great Desolate.
As for that stunningly beautiful woman, she was likely even more unprovokable by those present.
Because she was also a disciple of Eternal Life Pavilion.
Her name was Li Xin.
Moreover, she was Upper Immortal Qingqing's senior aunt.
She was not an Upper Immortal bearing the Immortal Dao's mandate.
But that wasn't important.
What was important was that Li Xin had already been a renowned master since the Ancient Era.
Beside Li Xin followed the elderly woman and the mischievous young girl.
These two were also from Eternal Life Pavilion.
That elderly woman was even a senior of Eternal Life Pavilion, her cultivation unfathomably profound. Every time Upper Immortal Qingqing ventured out, she would accompany her, guarding her safety. The same went for the little girl; she often followed Upper Immortal Qingqing on her travels.
Mo Baiyu, Yunzhou, and others who had long admired Upper Immortal Qingqing had seen them before, so encountering the elderly woman and the little girl on Qingqing's ship was not strange.
What puzzled Mo Baiyu was: Why was Bai Ze also here?
And why was even a senior expert like Li Xin present?
However.
After all, they were all from Eternal Life Pavilion. It wasn't impossible that they were traveling with Upper Immortal Qingqing on some business.
Only.
What about Leng Jue?
He was a disciple of Dan Ding Valley. Why was he also on Upper Immortal Qingqing's grand vessel?
Could he also be pursuing Upper Immortal Qingqing?
If that were truly the case, it would be terrible news for Mo Baiyu.
If only Yunzhou, Mufeng, Yuanwu, and these other Upper Immortals were accompanying Upper Immortal Qingqing, Mo Baiyu's heart held at least some hope. At the very least, he was confident that in front of Upper Immortal Qingqing, he could ensure these fellows didn't steal his limelight. Even adding in Fuying, who bore two decrees, didn't worry him much.
But when Mo Baiyu saw Bai Ze and Leng Jue, his confidence instantly wavered.
Facing Leng Jue alone, he already lacked confidence, let alone Bai Ze, who was a fellow disciple of Eternal Life Pavilion alongside Upper Immortal Qingqing.
How could Mo Baiyu compete?
In terms of status and background, he couldn't compete.
In terms of cultivation and strength, he also had no confidence.
Originally, having chased across countless miles, Mo Baiyu had fantasized about admiring the vast, magnificent scenery of the Great Desolate with Upper Immortal Qingqing, or chatting about heaven and earth under the night sky.
Now, all these fantasies dissipated like bubbles with the appearance of Bai Ze and Leng Jue...
Mo Baiyu's heart felt somewhat despondent.
When Bai Ze and Leng Jue appeared, Yuanwu was also the first to withdraw his Great Sun Radiance.
Yuanwu was young and hot-blooded, arrogant and unruly, bowing to no one.
He looked down on Mo Baiyu, Yunzhou, and these other Upper Immortals, and he also looked down on the three Upper Demon Beasts opposite, even Fuying, who bore two decrees.
However.
No matter how young and hot-blooded, how arrogant and unruly, how domineering he was, he still dared not look down on Bai Ze and Leng Jue, these two disciples of the seventy-two Blessed Lands.
What was a gap?
This was the gap.
Yuanwu's status, background, cultivation, and strength were on par with Mo Baiyu and the others, so he feared nothing.
But Yuanwu's status and background simply couldn't be compared to Bai Ze and Leng Jue, these two disciples of the seventy-two Blessed Lands. Thus, deep down, he feared them. He knew he couldn't afford to provoke them and didn't dare to.
"This junior Mo Baiyu pays his respects to Senior Jin Hua, to Senior Li Xin."
Mo Baiyu took the lead, immediately stepping forward to bow and greet the elderly woman, Jin Hua, and Li Xin.
"Young man, we meet again."
Senior Jin Hua stared at Mo Baiyu and said, "You truly are persistent enough..."
"Oh?"
Beside her, Li Xin smiled. "Could it be this young man is also like all of them, chasing after and accompanying Qingqing every time she ventures out?"
"Indeed, it is so."
Senior Jin Hua swept her gaze over Yunzhou, Mufeng, Yuanwu, and the others, then let it rest on Mo Baiyu. "And among these young men, he runs after her the most diligently..."
"Hehe, truly quite persistent..." The beautiful woman named Li Xin teased with a laugh, "I really don't know what that girl Qingqing is thinking. To have such an infatuated man be so persistent towards her, does that girl really not feel the slightest bit moved? If there were a man so infatuated with me, I'm afraid I would have long been moved to death."
"Senior Li Xin jests."
Mo Baiyu knew Li Xin was joking and didn't think much of it.
"Heehee, Senior Aunt Li Xin, Qiao'er heard that back in the Ancient Era, you also had many, many admirers...
And Qiao'er also heard that some men waited outside our Eternal Life Pavilion's gates for many, many years just to catch a glimpse of you."
The mischievous-looking young girl chimed in, "But Qiao'er never saw Senior Aunt Li Xin being moved..."
"Little girl, what do you know?"
Li Xin said with a touch of melancholy, "Back then, your senior aunt was still somewhat young. There were many things I didn't really understand, and I acted according to my whims. Thinking back now, I really missed out on many, many good men back then, ah...
To the point that your senior aunt remains all alone even now."