319: Venerable One of Heavenly Mandate

[After leaving the City Lord's Mansion,]

[You returned to that remote little courtyard, accompanying Mr. and Mrs. Yang, Lulu, and Yu'er around a table of spiritual wine and delicacies.]

[Because you had set up the Four Symbols Array early on, the courtyard was not affected by the previous great battle.]

[During the meal, Mr. and Mrs. Yang and the others seemed to have sensed the impending separation, and their expressions were somewhat somber.]

[Only Qin Han ate happily, smacking his lips and occasionally glancing left and right.]

[Your Divine Sense swept through Qi Zhengyang's qiankun ring—it contained over ten Magic Treasures, 226 Top-Grade Spirit Stones, over 12 million Low-Grade Spirit Stones, and quite a few Medicinal Pills, Talismans, Formation Plates, and Cultivation Techniques.]

[This newly ascended Soul Transformation Cultivator's net worth was a bit more meager than you thought, even less substantial than some Late Nascent Soul Stage Cultivators.]

[Of course, this was only by your standards.]

[You took a portion of it: 200 Top-Grade Spirit Stones, 10 million Low-Grade Spirit Stones, a defensive Magic Treasure, a Soul Power Magic Treasure, and a purple-black jade stone that even you couldn't see through.]

[Subsequently, you handed the remaining resources along with the qiankun ring to Old Yang: "These things aren't very useful to me, but they're enough for the four of you to cultivate to the Golden Core stage."]

["If fate permits... we will meet again in the future."]

[You trusted Old Yang.]

[From the moment he took in that unfilial son, you knew that both he and Mrs. Yang were kind-hearted.]

[With Lulu and Yu'er accompanying them, the two elders shouldn't feel lonely.]

[Old Yang hesitated for a moment before finally taking the qiankun ring and saying solemnly, "Rest assured, Young Master Qin. We will certainly cultivate diligently without ceasing. In the future... we will surely be able to share some of your burdens."]

[You only smiled and said no more.]

[You didn't really expect them to be able to help with anything in the future; such an arrangement was just for your own peace of mind.]

[Looking at the somber expressions of the four, you couldn't help but urge them again: "Remember, when I'm not here, you must act low-key and not reveal your wealth. If you truly encounter difficulties... you can go to the City Lord's Mansion for help."]

[You paused, your tone becoming serious: "But it's best not to trouble others easily, to avoid getting involved in unnecessary Karma, or even... being used by those with ulterior motives."]

[You gave instructions one after another, getting more detailed as you spoke.]

[As Lulu and Yu'er listened, they finally couldn't suppress the tears in their eyes, and crystal droplets slid silently down their cheeks.]

[Qin Han tilted his head and looked at them curiously: "Sister Lulu, Sister Yu'er, why are you crying?"]

[Yu'er pursed her lips, shook her head, and raised her hand to wipe away the tear stains.]

[Lulu forced a smile and said softly, "Be good, Clumsy. Sister is just... happy to see you."]

["You cry when you're happy?" Qin Han nodded as if he half-understood.]

[Then it suddenly tilted its head back and let out a "Awoo—", its voice childish and abrupt.]

[Everyone was stunned at first, then they were all amused by its Clumsy manner and burst into laughter.]

[The gloom during the meal was unknowingly diluted a lot by the laughter.]

[Until midnight,]

[A spiritual light soared into the sky from the teleportation plaza, illuminating half the city.]

[Originally, Tianyang City was in a state of neglect, and the teleportation array had been suspended—to avoid a massive loss of personnel and resources.]

[But this time was different; the person using it was you.]

[On the ruins of the City Lord's Mansion—]

[Cao Qingyi stood quietly amidst the ruins, looking up at the spiritual light piercing the night sky, a soft light flowing in her eyes.]

[In the remote little courtyard—]

[The two elders stood side by side in the yard with a young woman and a petite figure.]

[All four looked up and gazed, their eyes moist, but no one spoke.]

[At the top of Langgan Pavilion in Tianyang City—]

[Qin Yang stood by the window, watching the spiritual light fade away, and whispered to himself: "Qin Tingli... Qin Tingli... could it be related to you?"]

[Deep within a certain layer of clouds—]

[Above the Immortal Palace that had transformed into drifting clouds, two illusory figures floated quietly.]

[The voice of the Weapon Spirit rang out softly: "Master, I always feel... he is different from others."]

["How is he different?"]

[The Weapon Spirit replied: "He seems ordinary, but he's unfathomably deep."]

[In front of a solitary peak Immortal Cave—]

[True Lord Piaomiao stood with his hands down behind a mysterious person.]

[The mysterious person gazed into the distance where the spiritual light had vanished, his voice indifferent: "Old man Yuqing, your fate tribulation... has arrived."]

[True Lord Piaomiao bowed respectfully: "Master, what should we do next?"]

["Go personally and inform Liu Xuanyin and Lu Bihe to have them act according to the plan."]

["Yes!" True Lord Piaomiao respectfully accepted the order.]

[It turned out,]

[During the twelfth simulation—]

[You were able to leave Tianyang Star because this mysterious person intentionally let you go.]

[This mysterious person was, naturally, the Venerable Tianming.]

[Otherwise, with the strength of the Liu Clan Immortal Family, how could you have possibly escaped from the sealed Tianyang Star?]

[This Venerable Tianming was skilled in the dao of heavenly fate. From the moment you revealed the immortal slaying sword, he had calculated your destiny—you would become the disciple of Venerable Yuqing.]

[This meant—you were Venerable Yuqing's fate tribulation.]

[For a Mahayana Venerable, a disciple is the most important Legacy.]

[So he had Liu Xuanyin intentionally let you go.]

[Then, he had Instructor Ji Mie give the "Yun Yao's token" to Liu Jinfeng, making you appear before Instructor Yun Yao and Venerable Yuqing.]

[The subsequent plan was: Liu Jinfeng would duel you, Liu Xuanyin's primordial spirit clone would kill you, and ultimately drag Venerable Yuqing into the mess.]

[Regardless of whether Venerable Yuqing stepped into this chain of destiny traps, as long as you, the disciple, died, the plan would be achieved.]

[If Venerable Yuqing sat idly by, it would surely become a Heart Demon, and he would likely never be able to progress further in this life.]

[As a Mahayana Venerable, if one cannot act as one pleases and have clear thoughts, wouldn't that be ridiculous?]

[Even if Venerable Yuqing rashly attacked the Liu Clan, he would step into the Liu Clan's trap, and Venerable Tianming and the Yan Emperor would join forces to deal with Venerable Yuqing.]

[Because no one knew—the entire Liu Clan Territory was actually a Cage of Heaven that had been set up for thousands of years.]

[This setup used the Liu Clan Territory as a base and arranged a powerful Formation.]

[This Formation was named the "Ten Directions Immortal Locking Formation," requiring a total of 10,008 Formation bases and ten core Formation eyes to guard it.]

[Once the Formation was fully activated, even a Mahayana Cultivator would be like a trapped beast in a cage, unable to escape.]

[And one of the crucial Formation eyes was—the tianshu giant eye.]

[Therefore, when the tianshu giant eye was destroyed, the nearby Void Realm was equivalent to a loophole. Even if the great Formation was activated, one could break through the Void Realm from here and escape.]

[Venerable Tianming's goal seemed very simple on the surface—]

[Because the Dean of Kunlun Dao Academy could undergo tribulation and ascend at any time. Once he ascended, a new Dean would be born from among the three Vice Deans.]

[He had to take control of Kunlun Dao Academy.]

[Because only by controlling Kunlun Dao Academy could he begin his next plan.]

[Most importantly—this Venerable Tianming had an excellent reputation in the academy and even the entire Immortal Realm.]

[Those who knew his hypocritical face were either all dead or didn't dare to say much at all.]

[And his biggest competitor was Venerable Yuqing.]

[As for Venerable Yuqing, he saw a hint of a clue the first time he saw you, which was why he took you as a disciple and kept you by his side.]

[In fact, it was more than that; Venerable Yuqing also had quite a history with the Qin Immortal Clan.]

[This was also one of the reasons why Venerable Yuqing took you as a disciple.]