"Senior Baihua, it seems your cultivation has advanced significantly once again?"
Having undergone a century of simulated experience, Sun Erlang was no longer the man he used to be. He naturally perceived the changes that had occurred in Daoist Baihua during his absence.
He could not help but feel awed.
Meanwhile, Yi Shu watched with keen interest the five rings in the sky that echoed and connected with one another, as well as the six brilliant stars encircling them.
"Senior Baihua has transported two more grotto-heavens. What hard work. These two new grotto-heavens seem even larger in scale than the previous ones; no wonder I feel Great Qi's speed through the void has become noticeably faster," Sun Erlang thought to himself.
"The Great Qi Sacred Dynasty truly lives up to its reputation," Yi Shu said with genuine sincerity as he sensed the various powers enveloping this pocket world at all times. "I imagine it has been no more than fifty years at most, yet a mere mortal realm could undergo such earth-shattering changes. I have truly become curious about your master, young master."
Daoist Baihua shot Yi Shu another inscrutable glance.
Yet he said nothing, offering only a cold grunt.
Leading the two of them before the Holy Emperor Throne, he promptly departed.
Looking at that mountain-like, towering figure seated above, Sun Erlang's heart trembled.
He had originally thought that after experiencing so many lifelike worlds in the simulations and witnessing those supreme Longevity realm cultivators from the Ten Sects of the Immortal Dao of the past, he would act a bit more at ease when facing his master upon his return.
Yet at this moment, Sun Erlang realized he was mistaken.
Facing Longevity realm experts, what Sun Erlang felt was the suppression of the weak by the strong stemming from a disparity in realms.
But facing his own master, Great Qi's Faceless Holy Emperor...
The reason Sun Erlang's body, mind, and even soul could not stop trembling was the Faceless Holy Emperor's unfathomable mystery, and...
An inherent perspective from on high, as if a higher-order being looking down upon a lower form of life.
"Master, I have returned." Sun Erlang knelt on one knee, just as he always had.
Yi Shu merely cupped his hands slightly.
"It is good that you have returned. It appears you have gained much from this trip." The voice of Faceless Holy Emperor Li Ping echoed through the vast, empty hall of the Holy Emperor Throne.
Sun Erlang recounted his experiences in detail, omitting nothing.
After listening to Sun Erlang's report, Li Ping finally addressed Yi Shu: "Since the Taiyan Sect has been so courteous, we must not be remiss either. During this time, you will guide him around the Sacred Dynasty."
"There are no taboos. Wherever this guest wishes to see, you may take him."
Sun Erlang was slightly taken aback, then quickly said, "This disciple understands."
"Go then."
He actually had no intention of conversing with Yi Shu at all.
Though Yi Shu was the avatar of the Taiyan Sect's collective consciousness, he still possessed the temperament of his own ego.
He tilted his head slightly, looked up at the high-seated Faceless Holy Emperor, and cupped his hands once more.
Until they left the Holy Emperor Throne, the Holy Emperor did not say another word.
"Seeing once is better than hearing a hundred times. Senior, once you take a walk around, you will naturally find the answers in your heart," Sun Erlang quickly explained to prevent any awkwardness.
"Very well. Then let me see what is so extraordinary about this place," Yi Shu replied with a chuckle.
Only his smile seemed somewhat different from before...
When he saw that nearly everyone within the Great Qi Sacred Dynasty cultivated the very same technique, a flicker of astonishment flashed through Yi Shu's eyes.
When he saw the Immortal Spirit Towers placed casually all across the Sacred Dynasty, constantly releasing spiritual energy outward, the smile on Yi Shu's face slowly vanished.
When he observed the Grand Formation of Heaven and Earth Myriad Spirits connecting the Great Qi Sacred Dynasty to other pocket worlds, Yi Shu's expression became fraught with suspicion and shock.
"Young master, do you know..."
The words reached Yi Shu's lips, yet he swallowed them back down.
Sun Erlang assumed the other was simply stunned by the sights of the Sacred Dynasty, and seeing that he did not finish his sentence, did not press him.
Next, Sun Erlang took Yi Shu to visit several key sites of the Sacred Dynasty, such as Wang Xuanba's exotic beast breeding base and the forging site of the Sky-Patrolling Arrows.
Along the way, Yi Shu grew increasingly silent.
Deep bewilderment and doubt flickered across his face from time to time.
Seeing this expression on him, Sun Erlang, who had been constantly shocked back at the Taiyan Sect, could not help feeling a sense of satisfaction and secret pride.
"Senior Yi, is there anything else you would like to see?"
Yi Shu did not respond immediately.
He gazed into the distance, as if attempting to take in this entire miraculous pocket world.
"If you hadn't mentioned wanting to launch a counterattack against the Xuanhuang Realm, I would almost think this was some hidden secret realm of the Alliance of Ten Thousand Immortals," Yi Shu said suddenly after a long silence.
"Apart from having fewer cultivators and top-tier powerhouses, you truly possess the qualifications to challenge the Alliance of Ten Thousand Immortals."
"However, based on what I have seen so far, it is still not enough to form an alliance with our Taiyan Sect," Yi Shu concluded.
"Young master, the waters of the Alliance of Ten Thousand Immortals run far deeper than you realize," Yi Shu said pointedly.
Sun Erlang showed no displeasure at Yi Shu's reaction. Instead, he gave a slight nod, deep in thought.
After pondering for a moment, Sun Erlang ultimately brought Yi Shu underground beneath the Holy Emperor Throne, to the space where Master Yin resided.
They did not see Master Yin in person.
Yet merely looking at the more than one hundred children cultivating here who had already attained Foundation Establishment at such a young age, Yi Shu lost his composure for the first time.
"This..." With his discernment, he naturally perceived the extraordinary nature of these Foundation Establishment children in an instant.
"How is this possible?"
At this moment, far away in the Taixuan Realm, everyone across the entire Taiyan Sect turned their gaze toward the Daqi pocket world.
Even the Dao Transformation Mother Stone, which constantly shone with azure light, seemed to pause briefly.
"Not long ago, a youth took things a step further on the basis of establishing the foundation with oneself, achieving the Hunyuan Golden Core," Sun Erlang said softly.
"Establishing the foundation with oneself?!" Hearing these words, Yi Shu froze completely.
This was no mere figure of speech; his thought processes genuinely ground to a halt.
Carrying a Dao Transformation Stone himself, Sun Erlang recognized at a glance that this was the sign of a Dao Transformation Stone running its computational power to the absolute limit.
"Impossible!"
After a long time, the word burst from Yi Shu's lips.
The children here, deep in thought and hard at work cultivating, turned their eyes toward Yi Shu one after another.
Displeasure showed in their gazes.
Having been taught by Master Yin, what they resisted most since childhood was the word "impossible."
Realizing he had lost his composure, Yi Shu cleared his throat lightly to cover it up.
He stepped slowly up to a porcelain-like little girl and observed her closely.
The more he looked, the more astonished he became.
Sun Erlang saw that Yi Shu's hands clenched tightly into fists beyond his control.
"Beyond the variables? Beyond the variables?"
"No, this isn't beyond the variables. This is..."
Yi Shu snapped his head up, seeming to lock eyes with the Faceless Holy Emperor seated upon the Holy Emperor Throne.
"A Xuanhuang Calamity Deliverer?!"
Chapter 1199