Grandmistress

All along, a question had troubled Lu Yang. If chanting the Immortal Fairy's name was all it took to resurrect her, why had it taken three hundred thousand years for her to be accidentally resurrected by him? Drawing from the Imperial Preceptor's methods with his rudimentary Karma Dao fruit, whoever assassinated the Immortal Fairy might have relied on a similar technique to erase the world's memory of her. But would such a method work on immortals as well? No one could say for sure. Now, Immortal Suiyue's body lay buried beneath the Wood Vein, his immortal soul vanished without a trace, his fate unknown. If even Immortal Suiyue had ended up like this, what about Immortal Ying Tian, Immortal Jiuchong, and Immortal Kirin? What role had they played in Immortal Suiyue's fall? Were they the culprits, or fellow victims? "Fairy, do you really remember nothing about what happened before you fell? Any defining traits of the killer?" The Immortal Fairy knitted her brows tightly, racking her brains to recall what had occurred. "My memories from that period are very hazy. All I remember is that I was sleeping that day. In a daze, I felt my soul float up—it was so comfortable, like I was melting. I don't remember anything after that. When I woke up again, you had called out my name, my soul reconverged, and I was successfully resurrected." Lu Yang sighed. It seemed impossible to extract any useful information from the Immortal Fairy. The Immortal Fairy claimed to be the leader of the Five Ancient Celestials, so she certainly possessed genuine skill. It was impossible for her to have been ambushed without reacting in the slightest. Either the attacker was unimaginably powerful, or something was wrong with the Immortal Fairy's condition back then. "Killing me is one thing, but to not even spare Immortal Suiyue and the others—just wait till I find out who did it! See if I don't beat them to death!" the Immortal Fairy fumed. Dying once was nothing to her; over the long span of ages, someone would eventually speak her name by chance. But Immortal Suiyue was different. His true form was buried right here, meaning he had likely met an ill fate. Immortal Suiyue had helped her immensely in condensing her Immortal Dao fruit, a kindness she had to repay. "Once we return, I'll tell Eldest Senior Sister about this and let her decide," Lu Yang said dejectedly, regretting that he couldn't help the Immortal Fairy for now. "Since Immortal Suiyue's situation is unknown, how can the Jianmu still emanate vitality?" Lu Yang asked, pointing at the wooden plaque he had just received. The Immortal Fairy looked at the phantom projection of Jianmu she had conjured with a complex expression, sighing softly. "A wondrous marvel like Jianmu can gradually regain vitality so long as the slightest scrap of residue remains, completing a transition from death to life. You could consider it an alternate form of resurrection, except that would be a completely new Jianmu, having nothing to do with Immortal Suiyue. "The Jianmu beneath our feet is currently in the process of gradually regaining its vitality. In perhaps tens of thousands or hundreds of thousands of years, it will fully revive, rising from the earth to grow into a new Sky-Reaching Jianmu. "Look at that tree where girl Shangguan was resting earlier. It shouldn't have grown so tall originally; that was caused by the influence of Jianmu's vitality. If I'm not mistaken, the roots of that massive tree lie very close to Jianmu's position. "Immortal Suiyue himself once said that Jianmu suffered a great catastrophe in ancient times, snapped clean in half with all vitality extinguished, and a new Jianmu sprouted from the old one—and that was him." "Alright, little ones, that's enough sightseeing for today. Go rest tonight," Shangguan Yu said, clapping her hands. She had Bai Ming lead them to their lodgings, where they would begin studying the General Outline of the Five Elements tomorrow. Although she hadn't realized that what lay beneath the Wood Vein was Immortal Suiyue's true body, she knew the value of Jianmu. She didn't hand it out to just anyone; she simply believed these five were bound for greatness, destined to leave an indelible mark on cultivation history, so she was forming good karma with these juniors. The Five Elements Sect arranged their lodgings at the confluence of the Five Veins—the territory where Qiu Jin'an resided, equivalent in status to Tianmen Peak. "Oho, you're all back! Sect Master Lu, long time no see," a familiar-sounding voice chimed in, teasing Lu Yang. Lu Yang looked over and saw that it was Qiu Jin'an's eldest disciple, Lin Shaoyou. Possessing a wood spiritual root, his combat power at early Body Integration rivaled the late Body Integration stage—a genius on par with Senior Brother Dai Bufan. The last time the Five Elements Sect visited the Dao Seeking Sect, it was Acting Sect Master Lu Yang who hosted Lin Shaoyou. Back then, Lin Shaoyou had assumed that Eldest Senior Sister was also serving concurrently as Acting Sect Master, so he proposed challenging someone of his own generation. Then Eldest Senior Sister silently stepped forward, and Lin Shaoyou silently retreated, putting an end to the matter. "Greetings, Senior Brother Lin." The five clasped their fists in salute. "Alright, alright, don't be so stiff. Relax! I was just tired from practicing spells and came out for some fresh air. It just so happened you were back, so I thought I'd say hello. "Huh? Grandmistress gave you wooden plaques?" Lin Shaoyou noticed the wooden plaques hanging from their chests. Bai Ming's expression changed drastically, and he quickly pulled Lu Yang and the others away. Lu Yang and the others had no idea what was happening, but they obediently moved away from the spot. With a sharp crack, a startling bolt of thunder boomed, charring Lin Shaoyou crispy on the outside and tender on the inside, black smoke billowing from his entire body. Bai Ming whispered an explanation: "Senior Shangguan hates nothing more than people calling her old. Anyone who knowingly commits that offense ends up like this." "Cough, cough... It's nothing, no problem." The charred mummy came back to life, eyes bright. A faint cracking sound rang out as countless fissures spread across the charred mummy's surface. Lin Shaoyou stepped out unharmed from the mummy as though nothing had happened, even wearing a brand-new set of clothes. Bai Ming whispered again, "Eldest Senior Brother's clothes are formed by growing leaves from his own body and refining them into garments. Ordinary people can hardly catch the motion; I only learned about it after Master told me." Meng Jingzhou's eyes lit up. Lin Shaoyou was from the same generation as Dai Bufan, which meant he was also from Eldest Senior Sister's generation—and this wasn't the Dao Seeking Sect. "Senior Brother Lin, how old are you this—" Before he could finish, Lu Yang snapped to his senses, clamped a hand over Meng Jingzhou's mouth from behind, and dragged him back. *If you have a death wish, don't drag the rest of us down with you!* Everyone looked at each other, bewildered by Lu Yang's sudden, extreme reaction. Lin Shaoyou asked directly, "Junior Brother Meng, was there something you wanted to ask?" "Nothing, nothing at all! He was sleepwalking just now," Lu Yang answered on Meng Jingzhou's behalf. "By the way, Eldest Senior Brother, didn't you just master a new spell recently? Why are you still practicing spells?" "Heh heh, what kind of genius is your Eldest Senior Brother? Having new ideas and practicing new spells is only natural, isn't it?" "Then what are you practicing this time...?" "Combining the Tree Planting Art with Drawing a Circle as a Prison to increase the prison's strength. Explaining it is a bit troublesome, so just watch me demonstrate and you'll see." Lin Shaoyou took several tree seeds from his robes and spun in a circle to sow them. The seeds took root the instant they touched the ground and grew at rapid speed, enclosing Lin Shaoyou as their branches and foliage curved inward like a birdcage. The trees gleamed with a metallic luster, resembling the trees that grew in the Metal Vein. "See, just like this." Lin Shaoyou hammered a fist against an iron tree, but the tree didn't budge at all. He stomped down hard, yet the ground didn't budge either. The roots below were intertwined into a single expanse, indestructible and remarkably solid. "Impressive," Bai Ming exclaimed in admiration. Just this move alone could catch an enemy completely off guard, easily trapping someone of the same stage. "It looks like you execute it very smoothly, Eldest Senior Brother. Why do you still need to practice it? Is there some part that hasn't been perfected?" "This combo spell has a small flaw I haven't managed to overcome yet." "What is it?" "I don't know how to undo it." Bai Ming: "..." Bai Ming slowly raised his hands and clasped his fists vigorously. "Take care of yourself, Eldest Senior Brother!" Bai Ming gestured for everyone to leave. Lin Shaoyou sighed gloomily; it seemed he could only rely on himself. "Grandmistress, save me!" Rumble, rumble, rumble— Three bolts of lightning crashed down, leaving Lin Shaoyou completely unscathed. "Huh? What kind of principle is this?"