29: Under the Supreme Being, the mortal world is like an ant

Qinglan Holy Land, Forbidden Ground in the back mountains.

“That girl finally left.”

Sect Master Xuanmingzi stood with his hands behind his back in the center of the stone chamber. Under the flickering candlelight, his old face, usually adorned with a kind smile, was now as sinister as a ghost.

He lightly tapped the stone wall with his fingertips, and a dull echo reverberated through the secret chamber.

“It’s been two years…” His voice was hoarse. “Since the day the Upper Realm came and slew Elder Mo Qianjue, we have been treading on thin ice.”

Four figures emerged from the shadows of the stone chamber—all core Elders of the Holy Land.

Their expressions were solemn, and their auras were obscure and hard to discern, completely devoid of their usual Immortal-like demeanor.

“We had intended to fully support Elder Mo Qianjue, enabling him to Breakthrough, and then our Qinglan Holy Land could be called the strongest.”

“But we never expected a casual move from an Upper Realm mighty figure to ruin our decades-long plan in an instant.”

Using the name Qinglan to practice evil cultivation was truly a last resort, as there was more than just their Holy Land in this world.

If they didn't have a trump card, they wouldn't even be able to sleep peacefully.

“Who cares if it’s an evil technique or a good technique, as long as it can make us stronger.” The Third Elder spoke sinisterly, his withered fingers toying with a blood-red Jade Slip. “So, shall we continue?”

“If we stop now, years of effort will be wasted.”

“If we continue, then who will it be?”

Who will it be?

The candlelight suddenly flickered violently, and the chamber instantly fell silent.

Everyone simultaneously recalled the nightmare-like scene from two years ago—

Nine golden-armored figures stood in the air, and just a trace of their Spiritual Pressure caused the entire Holy Land’s mountain-protecting formation to crack.

Elder Mo Qianjue, a dignified Middle Stage of the Third Realm, was reduced to a mist of blood before such an existence, without even having time to scream.

It wasn't until today, with Yin Qiyue having left the Holy Land, that they dared to gather here to discuss.

The Fourth Elder suddenly slammed the table and stood up: “Stop talking about that! Let’s figure out how to deal with her first!”

“Watch your words!” The Grand Elder swept a cold gaze over them. “Have you forgotten the might of the Upper Realm Immortal’s descent that day? What if she has an Upper Realm mark on her…?”

“This won’t do, that won’t do, so what do you suggest we do?!”

“We nurtured her for so many years, pouring in so many resources…” The Sect Master suddenly said in a low voice, “That girl’s primordial Yin was supposed to be the finest tonic.”

He waved his sleeve, and the stone wall rumbled as it turned, revealing a dense array of Jade Slips behind it.

Each Jade Slip was engraved with a name, and most of them were already dim—these were the Disciples who had “disappeared” over the years.

“We can’t drag this out any longer.” A blood-red glint flashed in Xuanmingzi’s eyes. “Since the Upper Realm hasn’t paid attention for two years, it means that girl is just an insignificant pawn.”

He suddenly crushed the Jade Slip in his hand, and the blood-colored dust coalesced in the air into a phantom image of Yin Qiyue.

“We won’t take her primordial Yin; we cannot be greedy at this moment.”

“When she returns to the mountain in a few days…” His five fingers formed a claw, and the phantom image shattered in response. “Then we’ll send her to meet Elder Mo Qianjue!”

The Elders exchanged glances and nodded in agreement.

They were all cunning individuals who had cultivated for centuries; they wouldn't risk danger for the beauty of a young girl.

Just as the group was discussing, the entire stone chamber suddenly trembled violently!

“What’s happening?!” The Grand Elder’s face changed in horror, and the Magic Treasure whisk in his hand strangely snapped into two.

Everyone rushed out of the secret chamber, but the moment they stepped over the threshold, they felt as if struck by lightning—

“Boom—!!!”

The entire Qinglan Mountain Range trembled violently, and rocks tumbled down.

Looking up, a jade flying boat, so vast it obscured the sky and sun, had, at some unknown point, arrived at the top of the mountain-protecting formation. The shadow cast by its thousand-zhang hull enveloped the entire main peak in darkness.

“This… this is impossible!” Sect Master Xuanmingzi uttered an incredulous sound. “This is a flying boat? How can there be such a massive flying boat in the world?”

It wasn’t that he hadn’t seen the world, but the flying boat before him was simply too enormous.

Just the azure phoenix sculpture at its bow was larger than the entire Qinglan main peak.

At this moment, it was slowly descending, and the golden light barrier of the mountain-protecting formation appeared, clearly already activated.

“Enemy attack! Quick! Fully activate the formation!” The Elder responsible for guarding the formation’s core didn’t yet know what was happening, only able to shriek hysterically at those beside him.

As Spirit Stones were fed in, the mountain-protecting formation’s light surged.

However—

With a crisp “crack” sound.

This mountain-protecting formation, boasted to withstand the full strike of a Fifth Realm powerhouse, now shattered like a child’s soap bubble. Under the flying boat’s gentle pressure, it couldn’t even hold for a single breath before collapsing with a roar.

Amidst the falling golden light particles, the flying boat continued its slow descent.

It didn’t even activate any offensive or defensive measures; it simply, at a leisurely pace, crushed the Qinglan Holy Land's millennium-old mountain-protecting formation into dust.

Xuanmingzi’s legs gave out, and he directly knelt on the ground.

“Upper Realm Immortal…”

In the face of true power, their proud mountain-protecting formation couldn’t even make the flying boat slow down.

It was like ants forever unable to comprehend the weight of an elephant’s footstep.

Without a doubt, it was absolutely a mighty figure from the Upper Realm!

…

On the rear deck of the flying boat, Yin Qiyue looked at the disintegrating Holy Land beneath her, as if in a dream.

Moments ago, she was still conversing with the mysterious youth under the old locust tree in Qing Shi Town; in just a few blinks of an eye, she had returned to the Holy Land.

Not only that.

This Holy Land, the largest and strongest within a ten-thousand-mile radius, and the one she was most proud of, was now crumbling beneath her feet.

Just the Spiritual Pressure storm emitted by the flying boat’s descent was enough to destroy a Holy Land.

“This is… an Upper Realm person…” she murmured to herself.

However, these words sounded incredibly ridiculous to the Li family’s Sword Attendant beside her.

He sneered: “Upper Realm?”

His tone seemed to convey extreme disdain for the words “Upper Realm.”

“Not the Upper Realm?” Yin Qiyue suddenly realized that these terrifying beings before her hadn’t actually said they came from the Upper Realm. She quickly pressed: “Then, may I ask, Immortal, where do you hail from?”

“Immortal?” The Sword Attendant pondered for a moment and did not refute.

But he also didn’t answer, instead shaking his head.

“The place we come from cannot be spoken of or named in this realm.”

“People of the Lower Thousand Provinces often refer to the Middle Thousand Province as the ‘Upper Realm’; while not entirely wrong, it’s not entirely correct either.”

“Only when you truly set foot in the Upper Realm and learn of the existence of the Heaven Beyond Heaven will you know our origins.”

Speaking the words Ten Directions Immortal Court in the Lower Thousand Provinces and Middle Thousand Province would invite Karma.

While not a major issue, there was no need to explain it in detail to the person before him.

“Heaven Beyond Heaven…?” The young girl was startled upon hearing this, subconsciously looking up.

Just a few words, yet they shattered her lifelong understanding like a thunderclap.

“Above the Heaven… is there another Heaven?”