"Old Master, you're so old already, why are you still acting like those youngsters, learning to play at personal idol worship? Honestly..." Old Master Kaishan retorted with annoyance, "No matter how old this old man gets, he's still a man. Any man wants to be a true gentleman who stands tall between heaven and earth. You, a little woman, simply don't understand."
"Fine, fine, fine! I'm a little woman, I don't understand, alright!"
At this point, Li Xin no longer wanted to argue with Old Master Kaishan about what makes a man or a woman. She just wanted to go back. She asked, "Qingqing, Old Master and the others aren't planning to return. Shall the two of us go back then?"
"Martial Aunt..." Qingqing lowered her head and replied softly, "I... I don't want to go back either."
"What? You don't want to go back either? Girl, don't tell me you've really fallen for that You Di?"
"Martial Aunt, don't talk nonsense. I've already said I haven't! I just... want to stay and see."
"You!"
Just as Li Xin was about to say something, she suddenly sensed light blooming at the main gate of the Plum Blossom Immortal Realm.
"Who's trying to enter?"
This was the Plum Blossom Immortal Realm. Without permission from that mysterious Plum Blossom Elder, outsiders could not enter. The Plum Blossom Immortal Realm had always been isolated from the world, and that Plum Blossom Elder rarely interacted with outsiders. The reason the people from Changsheng Pavilion could enter was because Changsheng Pavilion had some connections with the Plum Blossom Immortal Realm.
Just as Old Master Kaishan was wondering, a group of over a hundred people appeared within the Plum Blossom Immortal Realm.
Seeing the newcomers, not only were Li Xin and Qingqing startled, but Old Master Kaishan's expression also showed surprise.
They all recognized this group of over a hundred people—they were from Dan Ding Valley, another one of the Seventy-Two Blessed Lands.
If they were just ordinary disciples of Dan Ding Valley, they wouldn't have caused such astonishment among the Changsheng Pavilion members. The reality was, among this group of over a hundred who appeared in the Plum Blossom Immortal Realm, most were ancient powerhouses who had ascended the Heavenly Ladder and were renowned far and wide. What surprised them even more was that among the three leaders, two were actually Great Dao Star Lords.
One was Immortal Lord Bai Yuan.
The other was Demon Lord Huang Feng.
As was widely known, Great Dao Star Lords were Heavenly Destinies of the Present-Ancient Era. In other words, they were individuals blessed by the Heavenly Destiny of the current era.
Whether in terms of innate talent and bone structure, or mental state and comprehension, they were unparalleled. Their cultivation achievements were peerless under heaven. Great Dao Star Lords who bore the Heavenly Mandate were not on the same level as those so-called Immortals who bore Edicts. The gap between the two was as vast as heaven and earth.
Because Edicts were bestowed by the Great Dao.
Whereas the Heavenly Mandate was bestowed by the heavens, by the universe itself.
The Great Dao could bestow Edicts, and it could also take them away. But the Heavenly Mandate was something the Great Dao could not strip away.
Similarly, those who accepted Edicts bestowed by the Great Dao had to obey the Great Dao's will. Those with Heavenly Mandate did not need to obey the Great Dao's will. Not only did they not need to obey, in a sense, these Heavenly Mandate individuals were Great Dao emissaries arranged and chosen by the heavens. They also had the qualification to wield the laws of the Great Dao.
For example, a Star Lord of the Immortal Dao could wield the laws of the Immortal Dao.
If it were a Star Lord of the Monster Dao, they could wield the laws of the Monster Dao.
This was precisely why Heavenly Mandate Star Lords were so terrifying.
Just think—being able to wield the laws of the Great Dao. How could that not be terrifying? Moreover, these Heavenly Mandate Star Lords were themselves peerless geniuses across the Myriad Heavens and Worlds. Even without wielding the laws of the Great Dao, relying solely on their own formidable achievements, they were absolutely incomparable to those so-called Great Dao Prodigies outside.
However.
The powerhouses Dan Ding Valley brought this time were not limited to just two Great Dao Star Lords.
The leader was a middle-aged man with a rather stout build, wearing a yellow robe, his face stern and imposing. His identity was even more formidable.
His Dao title was Xuan Xingzi.
He was an Elder of Dan Ding Valley.
Hailed as the North Altar Immortal King.
That's right.
An Immortal King!
And his title of North Altar Immortal King was not self-proclaimed, nor was it conferred by the Nine Heavens, nor was it given by others. Because he himself was a Great Dao Throne bearing the Heavenly Mandate, and moreover, an Immortal Dao Throne with seniority from the Ancient Era. His fame throughout the Great Wilderness was immense.
When they saw the North Altar Immortal King, along with the two Great Dao Star Lords, leading a group of Dan Ding Valley's ancient powerhouses into the Plum Blossom Immortal Realm, both Old Master Kaishan and Li Xin and Qingqing were somewhat suspicious and wary.
Especially Old Master Kaishan.
Others might not be clear, but he knew that the matter of You Di was not as simple as it appeared on the surface. It involved not only the covert struggles among the Three Thousand Great Daos, but also hidden elements of Original Sin, the impending tribulation, and even the fortune of the Present-Ancient Era.
And the Thirty-Six Grotto-Heavens and Seventy-Two Blessed Lands had always had an unwritten agreement: they did not participate in the struggles among the Three Thousand Great Daos, nor did they involve themselves in the fortune of any era.
Of course.
It wasn't impossible that people from other Grotto-Heavens and Blessed Lands had come to watch the spectacle. But judging from the lineup Dan Ding Valley brought, they didn't seem to be here just to watch.
"Junior Xuan Xingzi pays his respects to Senior Kaishan."
As the North Altar Immortal King approached, he cupped his hands in greeting with an expressionless face. Dan Ding Valley's ancient powerhouses, including the two Great Dao Star Lords, did the same.
Although Old Master Kaishan did not possess a Great Dao Heavenly Mandate, he was a senior from the Late Ancient Era, highly respected and virtuous within the Great Wilderness. Coupled with the connections between the Thirty-Six Grotto-Heavens and the Seventy-Two Blessed Lands, any disciple from a Grotto-Heaven or Blessed Land, no matter how high their current cultivation or status, would pay their respects upon meeting Old Master Kaishan.
Immediately after, juniors like Li Xin and Qingqing also bowed in turn to the North Altar Immortal King, Immortal Lord Bai Yuan, Demon Lord Huang Feng, and Dan Ding Valley's many ancient powerhouses.
Old Master Kaishan probed, "Has the North Altar Immortal King and your esteemed group come to visit the Plum Blossom Elder?"
"No."
The North Altar Immortal King was not only tall in stature but also rather stout. Standing there, he resembled a mountain peak, giving off a strong sense of oppressive pressure. Even an ancient fairy like Li Xin, who had ascended the Heavenly Ladder, felt immense pressure standing before the North Altar Immortal King. Especially since the North Altar Immortal King was notoriously cold and ruthless in his actions, which made Li Xin and the others feel extremely uncomfortable.
The North Altar Immortal King looked at Qingqing and said, "We have come specifically to find Miss Qingqing."
"May I ask why the North Altar Immortal King seeks Qingqing?"
Old Master Kaishan seemed somewhat puzzled and asked, "Could it be that you are also here because of You Di?"
"Yes and no."
"How so?"
"Senior, you should be aware that a disciple of our Dan Ding Valley, Leng Jue, was beaten into a cripple by You Di aboard the Xuantian Vessel!"
Hearing this.
The Changsheng Pavilion members were all taken aback. They then remembered that aboard the Xuantian Vessel, there indeed seemed to be a Dan Ding Valley disciple who was beaten into a cripple by You Di. But they still didn't quite understand why the North Altar Immortal King had come. Could it be to seek revenge for that disciple?
That didn't seem likely. Was it worth it for the North Altar Immortal King and two Great Dao Star Lords to personally come with so many ancient powerhouses just for one disciple?
And to seek revenge against You Di?
That was You Di.
To seek revenge against You Di for just one disciple?
Wasn't that too risky?