In the past three hundred thousand years, battles between immortals were not entirely unheard of, but an immortal battle taking place openly in full view of the public was a first.
What had happened in the East Sea swept through the streets and alleys like a hurricane in the shortest time imaginable.
"Who would've thought? How long has it been since the Phoenix Clan Ancient Ancestor awakened, and now even the Dragon Clan Ancient Ancestor has revived!"
"Doesn't that mean both of Immortal Kirin's wives have taken the stage?"
"I heard Daoist Sanshan was the one who tracked down the Dragon Clan Ancient Ancestor's whereabouts, and to give the Old Dragon Emperor a pleasant surprise, presented her as a gift at the longevity banquet."
"Weird, how come I heard Daoist Sanshan wanted to seize the Old Dragon Emperor's body, only for something to go wrong midway, his sneak attack failed, and the Dragon Clan Ancient Ancestor stopped him?"
"That's what I heard too. Otherwise, why would they have started fighting afterward?"
"Taking on two by herself and suppressing two half-immortals—the Dragon Clan Ancient Ancestor is truly absurd."
"Doesn't Supreme Zhu Tian claim to be the number one beneath the immortals? Could he pull that off?"
"No clue."
"Who do you think that immortal who appeared later was? The one who wanted to kill the Dragon Clan Ancient Ancestor and ended up clashing with the Cult Master of the Heavenly Court Cult?"
"They say the Ancient Heavenly Court rivaled the Four Ancient Celestials. Could that immortal be one of the Four Ancient Celestials?"
"That can't be right. If one of the Four Ancient Celestials took action, would Immortal Kirin just stand by and watch?"
"Then who do you think it was?"
"Maybe it was the founding Emperor Qian, Emperor Zhongtian."
"Unlikely. Didn't that immortal even cut down Lord Shanhe?"
"Maybe he found Lord Shanhe an eyesore for a long time, so slashing him to death in one stroke would make sense."
"Put that way, that makes sense too."
***
Qiongqi Clan.
The moment Clan Head Jin caught wind of the Dragon Clan's appearance in the East Sea, he immediately asked Daoist Buyu for leave and rushed back to the demon race.
Before even stepping inside the ancient tomb, he heard the furious voice of Little Ancestor Jin Caiwei.
"Damn it! How are they popping up one after another?!"
Clan Head Jin entered the ancient tomb and saw Little Ancestor so enraged that her hair stood on end, like a bristling kitten that no one dared touch. The Qiongqi Clan's Tribulation Transcendence cultivator standing nearby had no idea how to comfort her.
And there was no comforting her. When Jiang Lianyi appeared, Little Ancestor lowered her goal in the struggle of the Golden Age from top ten to top eleven; now that Ao Ling had shown up, it had to drop from top eleven to top twelve.
If a few more of Little Ancestor's old acquaintances popped out, there would be no need for her to compete in the Golden Age at all.
Moreover, he figured Little Ancestor was throwing a fit for another major reason: both of Immortal Kirin's wives were awake now, so what business did she have left?
"Xiaoque, why are you back?" Jin Caiwei noticed Clan Head Jin Que.
Clan Head Jin thought to himself: *Isn't it because I was worried you'd throw a temper tantrum, Little Ancestor?*
Naturally, such words could not be voiced aloud.
"I made friends with a big brother in Great Xia. This big brother is quite extraordinary! He has a vast circle of acquaintances, with connections spanning the entire cultivation world. Every Body Integration cultivator who sees him greets him warmly—he is exceptionally popular." Clan Head Jin gave a thumbs-up, full of boundless praise for Big Brother Daoist Buyu.
"Relying on his connections, I can hook us up with the Dao Seeking Sect. The Dao Seeking Sect has Daoist Lord Hanhai, a half-immortal who grasps a rudimentary Dao fruit of Space, ranking top-tier even among half-immortals. Little Ancestor, what do you say we form an alliance with the Dao Seeking Sect, combining our strengths to carve out a domain for ourselves in the struggle of the Golden Age?!"
"Besides, one more friend means one less enemy, and having fewer enemies in the future is always a good thing." This was the insight Clan Head Jin had derived in reverse through observing Daoist Buyu's interpersonal relationships.
Jin Caiwei fell silent. Xiaoque's proposal wasn't without merit. But she was accustomed to acting alone and reluctant to cooperate with others. "Let me think it over carefully."
***
Zhu Tian sat upon his imperial chair, his face a contortion of inner conflict. "How is Big Sister Ao Ling alive too? Is it really so hard for me to rule supreme and reign over the world?"
He began to seriously contemplate the feasibility of going back to sleep until the end of time.
*Should I just put in the effort to butter up Big Brother Lu?*
*I wonder what Big Brother Lu is lacking. Maybe send a couple of beauties to test the waters?*
***
While the world was abuzz discussing Ao Ling's whereabouts and the identities of those involved in the immortal battle, someone arrived quietly before the mountain gate of the Dao Seeking Sect.
Stepping through the gate, the visitor frightened away the river spirit with a single glare, successfully slipping into the Dao Seeking Sect's interior.
Familiar with the route, the visitor ascended to the summit of Tianmen Peak, where they saw Lu Yang cultivating and Ao Ling lying on the ground, asleep while clutching her tail.
The visitor raised a hand, and terrifying spiritual energy coalesced in their palm.
Sensing someone attempting a sneak attack, Ao Ling snapped her eyes open. With a swift kip-up, she sprang to her feet and thrust a palm straight at the intruder.
Striking second yet arriving first, the two palms collided. The gale kicked up by the clash blew back the visitor's cloak, revealing a face deeply familiar to Lu Yang.
"Senior Lianyi!"
"Jiang Lianyi, I knew it was you! No one else would sneak around trying to ambush me like that!" Ao Ling laughed and scolded.
As if she hadn't seen Ao Ling at all, Jiang Lianyi bowed to Lu Yang. "Greetings, Senior Brother Lu Yang."
Jiang Lianyi had guessed right away that Ao Ling would definitely be at the Dao Seeking Sect right now.
Immediately afterward, she turned her head and said to Ao Ling with a faint smile, "Junior Sister Xiaoling, how dare you address your senior sister by her personal name? How improper."
Ao Ling remained unmoved. "We are both unregistered disciples, so why bother distinguishing between senior and junior sisters?"
"Senior Brother Lu Yang, you be the judge! Didn't I greet you as my senior brother first? I ought to be Xiaoling's senior sister!"
"Senior Brother Lu Yang, speak up! Neither Lianyi nor I qualify to be Elder Sister Immortal's formal disciples. Calling you our senior brother is already reaching above our station, so there originally shouldn't be any senior or junior sister distinctions, right?!"
Hearing this gave Lu Yang a pounding headache. *Senior Ao Ling, please don't say such things, I'm terrified.*
Lu Yang desperately wanted Eldest Senior Sister to return, but unfortunately, she had gone off to repair the dragon-pattern bracelet and wouldn't be back anytime soon.
Fortunately, even without Eldest Senior Sister, there was the Immortal Fairy to smooth things over.
The Immortal Fairy floated out from the spiritual space to act as a peacemaker. "Since ancient times, strength has reigned supreme! How about the two of you have a fight, and whoever wins gets to be the senior sister?"
Cold sweat poured down Lu Yang's back. *Immortal Fairy, it would have been better if you hadn't come out at all.*
"In our Immortal lineage, harmony is prized above all! Harmony is prized above all—there is no need to resort to blows," Lu Yang hurried to urge. If these two ancestors started brawling in the Dao Seeking Sect, even Ancestor Hanhai wouldn't be able to stop them, and he might even end up on the receiving end of a combined dragon-phoenix beatdown.
As their senior brother, Lu Yang still held considerable weight in the hearts of the two ancestors of the Dragon and Phoenix Clans. Since he urged them not to fight, they refrained.
Jiang Lianyi still had an ace up her sleeve. She anticipated that Ao Ling had surely become a guest elder of the Dao Seeking Sect as well. "Guest Elder Ao, I became a guest elder before you. According to sect customs, you ought to address me as senior sister."
Ao Ling had long anticipated that Jiang Lianyi would pull something like this and sneered coldly, "You probably don't know yet, do you? I can redeem contribution points to become Acting Sect Master! Guest Elder Jiang, even you will have to obey this Acting Sect Master's orders!"
Jiang Lianyi froze. She really hadn't known that contribution points could be redeemed for the position of Acting Sect Master, never having paid attention to such matters.
"Elder Sister Immortal, how do you earn contribution points?" Jiang Lianyi turned her head to ask the expert.
"Contribution points, as the name implies, come from making contributions to our sect! For instance, this Immortal once took out a wicked Body Integration cultivator and served as Acting Sect Master for three days."
Jiang Lianyi's eyes lit up upon hearing that. That wasn't hard at all. "Once I return, I'll have Zhu Tian capture two wicked Body Integration cultivators and deliver them to Senior Brother Lu Yang."
Ao Ling snorted coldly, as if she couldn't do the same. "I'll go to the East Sea and have the Dragon Clan capture two ancient Body Integration cultivators to deliver to Senior Brother Lu Yang too!"
"I can also have Zhu Tian capture ten Body Integration cultivators!"
"I can capture ten Body Integration cultivators too!"
"I can capture an ancient Tribulation Transcendence cultivator!"
"I can capture ancient Tribulation Transcendence cultivators too—a pair of them!"
"I can make Zhu Tian give the Demon Domain to Senior Brother Lu Yang!"
"I can unite the East Sea and give the East Sea to Senior Brother Lu Yang!"
Lu Yang listened, utterly dumbfounded. *How did this conversation end up making me the master of both the Demon Domain and the East Sea?*
Chapter 880