The feast commenced, and the dishes were served.
Female cultivators invited from Lingtian Pass danced gracefully and sang melodious tunes, accompanied by the strumming of zithers and the playing of reed pipes.
Amidst the bustling crowd, two figures moved against the stream and took their seats beside Luo Chen.
Meeting the curious gazes of the gathered guests, Luo Chen briefly introduced them: "These are my Dao companions, Sima Huiniang and Gu Caiyi!"
The Nascent Soul True Persons swept their eyes over the two women, nodding politely while committing their appearances and auras to memory.
Should they cross paths in the future, they would grant Luo Chen some face; even if they did not treat them with high courtesy, they would at least refrain from making things difficult for them.
Under these amicable glances, the tension hidden beneath the two women's robes finally eased.
Sitting behind Luo Chen, they watched him raise his cup and converse freely with the distinguished assembly. When their eyes occasionally met, they saw only joy and delight reflected in each other's gaze.
Once, even establishing a Foundation was an elusive dream.
Now, they had forged their Dao foundations, formed Golden Cores, and could even sit composedly before a gathering of Nascent Soul True Persons.
It was a surreal spectacle they had never dared imagine!
And all of it had been granted to them by the man before them.
While their hearts surged with emotion, the dancing in the hall had long ceased, leaving only the gentle melodies of zithers and strings to accompany the leisurely conversation among the Nascent Soul True Persons.
"The North Sea?"
"Indeed, the North Sea. The customs and local culture there differ vastly from our Eastern Desolation. In particular, resources are immensely bountiful—so much so that even loose cultivators have achieved the Grand Dao of the Nascent Soul!"
"I have read in ancient records that the North Sea is rich in resources, yet I never imagined it was abundant enough for loose cultivators to reach the Nascent Soul stage."
"Far more than mere Nascent Souls! Take the Three Great Loose Cultivators, for instance; every one of them can contend against late-stage Nascent Soul Great Cultivators. Overseas powerhouses are truly as numerous as stars in the sky!"
"The Three Great Loose Cultivators? Could one of them be named the Blood Hermit?"
"Does Jiuling Yuanjun recognize him?"
"In my youth, when I roamed the Western Desert, I did indeed encounter him. At that time, he was being hunted down by the Buddhist sects of the Western Desert and in quite a pathetic state. Yet, however disheveled he was, he survived unscathed. I took the opportunity to exchange a few moves with him, and we ended in a draw. He is indeed a formidable figure of his generation, by no means inferior to sect cultivators like ourselves."
"True Person Luo, having broken through to the Nascent Soul stage in merely a century, you must have made quite a name for yourself in the North Sea as well, yes?"
"I have a meager reputation, but compared to the great war currently raging across the North Sea, it is hardly worth mentioning."
"The North Sea war..."
Having broached the subject, Luo Chen began recounting tales of the North Sea.
The exotic flair of foreign lands was undeniably captivating. Under his vivid recounting, the atmosphere in the hall grew lively. When they heard the details of the demonic sect's collapse and the rise of the North Sea's new Four Great Overlords, quite a few felt a stir of restlessness.
However, once Castellan Lingtian swept his smiling gaze across them, none entertained such idle thoughts any longer.
The demise of the Yuan Demon Sect was purely a matter of lacking strength; they deserved their wretched end. The Mingyuan Sect was not so feeble as to be invaded and wiped out by mere demons—the very notion was an embarrassment.
Suddenly, a voice chimed in.
"Fellow Daoist Luo, you say that after breaking free from Mount Cangwu, you went to the North Sea?"
It was Lin Qingxuan—a former friend, now an aggressive interrogator.
Luo Chen smiled faintly. Since he had brought up the North Sea, he was naturally prepared. Taking this opportunity, he could reveal past events as a mixture of truth and falsehood, saving himself from endless speculation.
Nodding without denial, he said, "Indeed!"
Lin Qingxuan shook his head sharply. "Impossible! So many Nascent Soul True Persons and Golden Core experts failed to escape. How could you possibly have made it out alive?"
Luo Chen's expression remained tranquil. "Whether they could escape, I do not know, but how can you assume I could not? You were not there—how could you know the details?"
Lin Qingxuan froze, then glanced toward the two men from the Five Elements Divine Sect.
Shenhuo immediately took up the thread.
"Back then, to rescue the trapped cultivators, the Mingyuan Sect organized three Great Cultivators to storm Mount Cangwu. In the final battle, an almighty expert of Mingyuan intervened in person, forcing Mount Cangwu to flee into the azure sky.
"In that battle, Tianji Huiping and Ancestor Hehuan met tragic deaths, and our Divine Sect's ancestor was gravely wounded.
"In such perilous circumstances, when you were only at the Golden Core stage, how could you speak of surviving?"
His words, delivered with measured yet cutting urgency, revealed inside details that sent a wave of shock through the crowd.
The Battle of Cangwu was known across the realm, yet few knew its intimate details. Tianji Huiping and Ancestor Hehuan had both been peerless paragons dominating their respective regions, renowned for centuries. What manner of assault had they suffered that prevented even their Nascent Souls from fleeing, causing them to perish outright? And by what means had a Tier 5 sacred land fled into the azure sky?
Now that True Person Shenhuo had voiced these details so casually, everyone's gaze involuntarily turned toward Luo Chen.
Luo Chen, merely a Golden Core cultivator back then, had survived instead?
What did that imply?
The golden-robed man beside True Person Shenhuo said sinisterly, "Could it be that you are the demon race's..."
"Could it be that you gentlemen are ignorant of void shifting methods?"
A soft laugh rang out, laced with mockery.
Glancing at the golden-robed man, amidst the crowd's confusion, Luo Chen made an object appear in his hand. With a casual flick of his wrist, a compass-like artifact covered in cracks flew before Castellan Lingtian.
"Within Cangwu lay a peerless grand shifting formation. With it, one could roam the North Sea in the morning and reach Cangwu by evening, traversing the nine heavens straight into the azure sky.
"Yet such a formation was of paramount gravity; unless left with no alternative, the demon cultivators of Mount Cangwu would never have lightly activated it. Back then, they were truly pushed to desperation by the senior experts of the Mingyuan Sect.
"And this provided me with a prime opportunity to escape.
"Taking advantage of the void shifting, I activated a shifting formation plate of my own crafting... Unfortunately, my cultivation was meager back then, and I could not control the direction or distance, ending up hurled into the North Sea cultivation world."
He could not possibly reveal that he possessed a Blue Luan feather and used a teleportation array. Otherwise, people would only ask why he held a Blue Luan feather in the first place, and whether he had defected to the demon race to gain their trust. His recent advancement in the Dao of formations and mastery of void shifting methods served as a new, credible excuse.
Moreover, blending this explanation into the events of the past held up to scrutiny. He indeed had been teleported away, and the shifting of Mount Cangwu into the azure sky had indeed altered his destination; otherwise, according to Han Zhan's original plan, they were supposed to teleport directly back to the Great Snow Mountain.
A blend of truth and falsehood was always the most convincing deception.
As Luo Chen spoke, he observed Castellan Lingtian's reaction. The castellan examined the compass with keen interest for a moment, yet gave no significant reaction. After a brief look, he tossed it to the others.
Receiving it, Fu Lao murmured in slight confusion, "This formation plate seems rather new?"
Luo Chen readily admitted, "It is indeed somewhat new; the old formation plate was destroyed long ago. This item was crafted by me while in the Central Plains' Tianyuan Dao Sect, and it has been used several times."
That compass was none other than the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths Great Void Shifting Compass Luo Chen had crafted in the Mirage Dragon Grotto-Heaven. As for using it "several times," that was a bit of an exaggeration. Yet in the eyes of those examining it in turn, a formation plate capable of shifting void multiple times was already of extraordinary caliber!
If Luo Chen had possessed a similar treasure back then and resonated with Mount Cangwu's peerless grand formation when it shifted, there truly was a slim chance of escaping with his life.
However, only a slim chance!
Jinling did not take the compass offered before him, staring coldly at Luo Chen. "If we speak of formations, Tianyezi, who was imprisoned back then, surely far surpassed you!"
Luo Chen met his stare with a cold smirk. "How could the attention given to a Nascent Soul cultivator compare to what was paid to mere juniors? Tianyezi's physical body was destroyed and his Nascent Soul imprisoned; he was worse off than a low-level Qi Refinement cultivator."
"Then what of Haoranzi and Wei Wuya, who were also trapped on Cangwu? Both were proficient in formations. Could it be they were inferior to you as well?"
"Yes, they were inferior to me!"
"You!"
Luo Chen said with complete confidence, "Otherwise, how could I have achieved Nascent Soul? How could I stand as an equal alongside all of you?"
Half-truths were indeed effective at persuading others, but whether people believed them depended heavily on their subjective sentiments. Clearly, these two from the Five Elements Divine Sect had never trusted Luo Chen from the start!
In that case...
If he could not convince them with reason, then he would crush them with might!
An aura slowly radiated from Luo Chen. Deep as an abyss, oppressive as a prison, supremely overbearing!
Behind him, Sima Huiniang and Gu Caiyi watched in utter shock, their hair fluttering wildly. It felt as though an ancient volcano was about to erupt right in front of them. The sheer pressure nearly suffocated them.
Yet with a mere shift of Luo Chen's thought, the suffocating oppression vanished without a trace.
Catching their breath, the two women exchanged trembling looks. If merely the residual shockwave had left them breathless, what manner of terrifying pressure must the enemy at whom this coercion was aimed be enduring?
A Nascent Soul domain!
The moment that aura rose, everyone present recognized Luo Chen's technique.
In a flash, all eyes snapped toward the pair from the Divine Sect.
Luo Chen's provocation demanded an answer. But as he was merely a newly ascended Nascent Soul cultivator, it would be appropriate for True Person Shenhuo to respond.
"Hmph!"
A cold snort rang out, accompanied by a flash of golden light.
"Just as well—let this old man test your mettle!"
Before the words finished echoing, another aura, by no means inferior to Luo Chen's, surged skyward.
The surrounding spiritual energy of heaven and earth converged wildly, condensing into a boundless golden radiance above the golden-robed man.
It was Jinling!
The First Palace Master of Fenghua Palace changed countenance slightly. A clash of domains was the purest and most direct contest of cultivation—it involved no divine abilities, magical arts, magic treasures, or True Artifacts, secondary only to a battle of divine senses. In such a direct manifestation of magic power, she had not originally been worried for Luo Chen. Since he had managed to suppress Old Ghost Motian previously, True Person Shenhuo ought not to pose much of a threat to him.
Yet no one expected that the one stepping forward would be Jinling!
As head of the Five Peaks elders of the Five Elements Divine Sect, Jinling possessed the highest cultivation among them, standing at the fifth layer of the Nascent Soul stage! He was also the foremost expert in the Five Elements Divine Sect below the Supreme Elders.
In this hall, excluding Castellan Lingtian, almost no one could claim certainty in defeating Jinling. Even she and Jiuling Yuanjun were only on par with Jinling in cultivation stage. The Master of the Wan Jian Pavilion might boast formidable combat prowess, but his cultivation realm was slightly inferior. One could say that barring the intervention of Great Cultivators, Jinling ranked among the very first tier of powerhouses.
How could a newly ascended Nascent Soul like Luo Chen compare to such a figure?
"Fellow Daoist, aren't you going too far?" she said coldly.
Beside her, True Person Xianhe added with displeasure, "Is the Five Elements Divine Sect always so domineering? Those unaware might mistake you for experts from a sacred land."
As he spoke, True Person Xianhe stole a glance at Castellan Lingtian in the head seat.
Yet the castellan sat completely unperturbed, watching the two with amused detachment.
Castellan Lingtian's refusal to intervene was tacit consent for this "Dao discussion" to proceed.
Taking this as a cue, Jinling wore a cruel sneer.
"Let me see what backing gives you the audacity to claim equality with us!"
At a thought from Jinling, his Nascent Soul domain, compressed to its absolute limit, slowly drifted toward Luo Chen.
This clash of domains differed from any Luo Chen had seen before.
In the past, clashes had involved broad domains where neither combatant deliberately compressed their power, instead expanding their reach as quickly as possible to encroach upon each other and seize control over the surrounding spiritual energy. But constrained by the hall, such an approach was impossible here; hence, they sought an extreme clash within a confined space!
This was a test of control over one's own magic power!
A test of the sheer depth of magic power and the corresponding volume of heaven-and-earth spiritual energy it could command!
A contest of microscopic precision and nuanced prowess within inches!
Looking upon Jinling's savage face, a line of text from the *Luotian Annals* surfaced in Luo Chen's mind:
[*Duan Feng and his wife, skilled in identifying mineral ores, were forcibly dispatched by True Person Jinling of the Five Elements Divine Sect to the battle to reinforce the Two-Instrument Tin Woods in the Wuji Domain; both perished in the fray, leaving no descendants.*]
*I had not yet sought you out to demand an explanation, yet you come knocking at my door. How fitting!*
Luo Chen's eyes turned frosty as his Nascent Soul domain bore down toward Jinling.
In the next instant, red clouds and golden light collided, giving birth to a tempest of spiritual energy that swept in all directions through the grand hall.
The zithers, flutes, and reed pipes had long fallen silent.
Only the clattering of tables and chairs and the groaning of pillars and beams resounded.
The disturbance was growing rather immense.
Seeing this, Castellan Lingtian prepared to intervene to preserve the hall. After all, this was Luo Chen's Nascent Soul Grand Ceremony; though he wished to see what abilities Luo Chen had used to suppress his peers in the Mirage Dragon Grotto-Heaven, he did not want Luo Chen's potential humiliation laid bare before outsiders.
Yet just as he was about to act, his eyes suddenly focused on the dome of the hall, followed by a thoughtful expression.
*Is it a treasure or a formation shielding this hall? This Luo Chen may appear young, but his foundation is extraordinarily deep, and his methods endless.*
The extreme clash of domains erupted into an unspeakable barrage of magic power.
Though Jinling's realm exceeded Luo Chen's, he discovered that the youth's magic power was remarkably profound, drawing upon heaven-and-earth spiritual energy not a whit less than his own.
For several full breaths, he failed to gain the upper hand.
Gritting his teeth, Jinling surged more magic power from his Nascent Soul, his body floating into the air unbidden.
Sitting cross-legged in the void opposite Luo Chen, he snarled, "In the end, your realm is inferior to mine!"
In that single instant, bolstered by the full magic power of his Nascent Soul, the golden domain swelled abruptly, shining so brilliantly that none could look upon it directly!
Luo Chen's white-gold Daoist robe snapped fiercely in the wind, his black hair tied behind his back whipping wildly. Amidst the blazing red radiance, he looked as though he was on the verge of catching fire.
In his view, his domain was retreating step by step.
Faced with this, Luo Chen curled his lips into a smirk.
Being lower in cultivation realm was not the primary cause; in terms of sheer magic power, he was even slightly superior to his opponent. The reason his domain could not overwhelm Jinling was merely that his realm had not fully stabilized, resulting in inferior precision when manipulating his magic power.
Yet all of this was within his calculations.
Without any overt movement, he simply let out a low cry:
"Smelt!"
The very next instant, the retreating red clouds suddenly surged in reverse, wrapping around the golden light from all sides.
Waves of tyrannical spiritual energy began furiously driving out the metal-attribute spiritual energy.
Moreover, a wisp of pale white flame suddenly flared within the domain, as if lying in wait for an eternity. That pale white flame chased after the intrinsic magic power released by Jinling, continuously eroding and obliterating it.
Bereft of magic power to anchor it, the masterless heaven-and-earth spiritual energy disintegrated at an even swifter pace.
Fire inherently counteracts Metal!
Furthermore, the technique Smelting Void possessed immense exclusivity.
Once Luo Chen revealed his hidden hand, the tides abruptly turned.
The golden light fractured inch by inch, while the red clouds coalesced relentlessly, bearing down upon Jinling.
*Boom!*
A muffled, heavy impact sounded. Jinling crashed to the ground, staggering backward uncontrollably.
*Thump! Thump! Thump!*
The moment he regained his balance, he whipped around, his face livid with rage.
"You disregard martial honor, relying on external power!"
Defeated!
Jinling, who had held the upper hand moments ago, had been defeated in the blink of an eye!
Lin Qingxuan, being merely at the first layer of Nascent Soul, was thoroughly bewildered, while True Person Shenhuo wore a look of utter astonishment.
Fenghua Fairy, caught between disbelief and contemplation, seemed to have caught a glimpse of the essence behind Luo Chen's method. She raised her eyes to glance at Jiuling Yuanjun across the way; the latter was doing the same, rubbing his chin as if savoring Luo Chen's performance in the clash of domains.
And above, Castellan Lingtian ran a finger along the rim of his wine cup, nodding slightly.
Such prowess was indeed sufficient to overpower newly ascended Nascent Souls from sacred lands. Even against seasoned experts of ordinary sects, Luo Chen would not lag behind in the slightest.
As for the others, they wore varying expressions and harbored different attitudes as they watched the scene above.
*Whoosh...*
The red clouds filling the air dissipated, leaving Luo Chen seated calmly above.
His black hair rested against his back, his robe smoothed flat.
The red-gold dragon-patterned crown sat firmly atop his head.
He gazed coldly at the humiliated, furious Jinling. "What external power did I borrow?"
"That flame!" Jinling pointed a trembling finger at Luo Chen, driven near madness by his defeat in front of everyone. "You hid an exotic flame inside your domain!"
The corner of Luo Chen's mouth curved upward as a wisp of pale white flame materialized at his fingertip. "You mean this?"
"Yes!"
"Haha! This is my source true fire—how can that be considered external power?"
At those words, Jinling froze.
The others in the hall wore expressions of curiosity. Integrating one's source true fire into their Nascent Soul domain was certainly an ingenious concept!
Yet it was evident that Luo Chen had defeated Jinling by far more than just this small trick. His domineering Nascent Soul domain, which forcefully repelled heaven-and-earth spiritual energy of other attributes, was the primary factor.
Coupled with the elemental counter of Fire against Metal and Luo Chen's unexpectedly vast magic power... Jinling's defeat was well-deserved!
Under the gazes of pity and sympathy directed his way, Jinling nearly spat blood. In the end, he forced down the rage burning within his chest.
"This is merely a petty trick! Another day, we shall see whose fists ring true!"
Leaving behind that parting threat, Jinling turned on his heel and strode away.
After his departure, everyone's gaze shifted to the other representative of the Five Elements Divine Sect.
True Person Shenhuo!
In truth, for this Nascent Soul Grand Ceremony, Luo Chen had only invited Shenhuo; Jinling was an uninvited guest.
Now pinned by everyone's eyes, Shenhuo sat on pins and needles.
Luo Chen smiled, raised his wine cup, and gestured toward the assembly.
"Resume the music, resume the wine!"
The zithers, flutes, and reed pipes sounded once more, and wine cups clinked continuously, as if nothing had transpired—yet much had already been set in motion.
Chapter 788