101: Chapter 101 The Mysterious Woman in the Purple Dress

Qingyun Sect, peak of Cloud Peak.

Inside that Immortal Cave, shrouded in clouds and mist year-round and inaccessible to ordinary Disciples, incense burners burned unknown spices, the smoke curling and forming a world of its own.

True Lord Ziyang stood bowed with a humble posture, devoid of the majesty of a Golden Core Great Perfection Sect Master that he displayed before others.

He gazed at the graceful figure reclining on the white jade stone bed and finally could not suppress the confusion in his heart.

"Revered Master, this Disciple is confused."

His voice carried a hint of hesitation, "Jiang Feng has extraordinary potential, and his Physical Body is one in ten thousand. Since you helped him reach the top of the Ascending Heavenly Ladder, why did you have me let him go? If he were kept behind, the Qingyun Sect's reputation could be preserved, and the secrets he carries..."

The Purple-skirted Woman on the stone bed moved lazily, half-reclining and half-weary, her features full of charm.

She seemed not to have listened to True Lord Ziyang's words, instead chuckling, her voice carrying a lazy hoarseness.

"Oh? Disciple, do you like this body of your Revered Master?"

Upon hearing this, True Lord Ziyang felt a chill in his heart and quickly lowered his head, not daring to look at the alluring sight again.

"This Disciple would not dare!"

"Hehe, would not dare?"

The Purple-skirted Woman sat up, her clothes slipping to reveal a patch of snowy white shoulder. She walked barefoot, her jade feet stepping lightly off the stone bed, and paced before True Lord Ziyang. She extended a jade finger and gently hooked his chin, forcing him to meet her gaze.

True Lord Ziyang's breathing paused for a beat.

"Do you know why your Revered Master has always looked down on you?"

The smile on the woman's lips remained unchanged, yet her eyes suddenly became sharp.

"You have the heart of a thief, but not the courage."

"If this skin of yours also possessed the Physical Body strength of Jiang Feng, why would your Revered Master need to go through such trouble?"

Her finger traced across True Lord Ziyang's Adam's apple, her tone filled with disappointment.

"The entire Qingyun Sect is just a group of trash."

"In a hundred years, not a single person has been able to Cultivate a Physical Body strength capable of resisting the Great Dream Tide. Ridiculous, truly ridiculous."

Cold sweat seeped from True Lord Ziyang's forehead, and he didn't even dare to breathe loudly.

The Great Dream Tide was a taboo that the entire Qingyun Sect spoke of with bated breath.

"That Jiang Feng..." He spoke with difficulty.

"A decent piece of material." The Purple-skirted Woman withdrew her hand, turned around, walked back to the stone bed, and lay down lazily once more.

"Pass down the order to inform the entire Qingyun Sect not to provoke the Huoyang Commandery Jiang Family again. That old thing, I still have use for him."

"Everything else can wait until after the Great Dream Tide."

"Withdraw."

The woman waved her hand impatiently.

"Yes, Revered Master."

True Lord Ziyang let out a long sigh of relief, bowed respectfully, and slowly exited the Immortal Cave.

Not until the stone door of the Immortal Cave rumbled shut did he straighten his body and exhale a long, turbid breath. Recalling his Revered Master's gaze just now, his back was already icy cold, yet his mind was still filled with the graceful figure of the Purple-skirted Woman.

...

Huoyang Commandery, Jiang Family residence.

Inside a quiet room, the scent of medicine was thick.

Jiang Feng lay quietly on the bed, his face pale, his breathing weak, feeling as though he could stop breathing at any moment.

Had it not been for the cool Qi hidden within his body that automatically protected its Revered Master at the last moment of his fall, cushioning the impact, he would have long since been smashed into meat paste along with Lin Yueyao from that height of ten thousand feet.

That was precisely the strand of Qi that Yuan Chu had touched onto his brow when they parted ways.

Beside the bed, Lin Yueyao had just finished drinking the medicinal soup brewed by Yao Shifei, and a trace of color had returned to her pale face.

Her cultivation base was entirely ruined, but the Foundation of her Heavenly Spiritual Root remained; as long as she nurtured her body well, Cultivating again would not be difficult.

Yet, all her thoughts were currently on the man lying unconscious on the bed.

"Sister Yao, how is... how is my husband?" Lin Yueyao's voice trembled, tears welling up in her eyes.

Yao Shifei withdrew the finger she had placed on Jiang Feng's wrist, her brows furrowed tightly.

"It's very difficult."

She said in a deep voice: "The power of the Experience Orb forcefully raised his cultivation, so the subsequent backlash was inherently terrifying. He also spared no cost to activate that True Artifact, almost exhausting all his life Origin. Now, he is at the end of his rope, and his internal organs, Meridians, and bones are all shattered into a mess."

"If not for his Physical Body Foundation being absurdly strong, and that strand of Qi from Yuan Chu holding onto his last breath, he would have already..."

Yao Shifei did not continue, but the meaning was already very clear.

Su Wan, Zhang Yuniang, Huangfu Yunni, and Huangfu Yunshang... the wives and concubines were all gathered in the room. Hearing this, everyone turned pale, their eyes filled with despair.

Just then, Young Master Jiang Chen's voice came from outside the door.

"Old Ancestor, wives, the entire Huoyang Commandery is spreading rumors that a sixty-year-old man climbed the Qingyun Sect's Ascending Heavenly Ladder, causing nine bell tolls that shook the entire Yan Kingdom!"

Once these words were spoken, everyone was stunned.

Immediately, a deeper fear welled up in their hearts.

The Qingyun Sect had suffered such a great loss, with five Golden Cores incapacitated or injured, the mountain-protecting array broken, and countless Disciples dead or injured.

They did not spread the news of Jiang Feng causing chaos at the mountain gate, only releasing the news of the nine bell tolls. What did this mean?

It meant that they would settle this score themselves at any time!

Once the Qingyun Sect recovered, what awaited the Jiang Family would surely be thunderous retaliation!

"Husband is severely injured now. We cannot just sit and wait for death, watching the Qixia Alchemy Pavilion he built, and the Jiang Family itself, be destroyed at the hands of the Qingyun Sect."

Huangfu Yunshang, who had been silent, suddenly spoke. Although her nature was gentle, she came from the Commandery Lords Mansion, and her vision was not something ordinary women could compare to.

"The Qingyun Sect is a top Sect in the Yan Kingdom; our Jiang Family cannot block them. For now, there is only one path to take."

Everyone looked at her.

"What path?"

"Pick a side!" Huangfu Yunshang said decisively, "Depend on a Prince of the Yan Kingdom."

"But why would a Prince protect us?" Zhang Yuniang asked anxiously.

"The Yan Kingdom has a royal decree: Princes participating in the succession struggle can freely choose the Families behind them. The Qingyun Sect has no right to interfere, nor can they take action against such a Family. However, this Family must have a Golden Core True Lord overseeing it."

But the Jiang Family, where is there a Golden Core now?

For a moment, everyone fell silent. The hope that had just been ignited was instantly extinguished.

"I will go."

A hoarse and powerful voice came from the doorway.

The group turned around to see Ancestor Jiang Xuan already standing there.

His face was weathered. Looking at the dying Jiang Feng on the bed, and then at the weeping women in the room, a flash of determination crossed his eyes.

"Feng'er has fought to this point for the Jiang Family. Next, it should be my turn, this old thing."

Ancestor Jiang Xuan walked step by step to the bed, looking deeply at Jiang Feng, wanting to carve his image into his heart.

Then, he turned abruptly to face the crowd, his voice resounding.

"From today on, I enter a death-seclusion!"

"If I do not reach the Golden Core, I swear I will not come out!"

He possessed the Breakthrough pill given by Jiang Feng, and had personally experienced the supreme pressure of that Golden Core Great Perfection, so his insights into the Breakthrough far exceeded ordinary people.

For this pass, he had a ninety percent chance of success!

But, there was still a ten percent chance of death and Dao dissipation!

As the words fell, Ancestor Jiang Xuan did not linger any longer, striding towards the back mountain of the new Jiang Family residence, toward the stone chamber specifically prepared for the Family Elders to go into seclusion.

Everyone's gaze converged on his back, which was not tall but appeared incomparably firm at this moment.

"Boom —!"

The stone door slammed down, isolating the two worlds inside and outside, and also carrying the last hope of the Jiang Family.

Yao Shifei had also hoped to do so, but she was only at the Late-stage Foundation Establishment and still needed time to gain insights.