Chapter 23 – The Rumours are Out of Control!
The wind rushing across the deck of the flying ship was gentle and warm, a consequence of the enchantments protecting it. Disciples were clustered in groups everywhere or had gone below deck to meditate in the chambers constructed to gather spiritual energy.
Mei Lian and Lin Yue walked across the broad deck as the ship rose above the clouds. The pair were astonished by the sight, but they had something more pressing to attend to before they could enjoy the view.
Jun De stood alone at the front of the ship, his back straight and his robes fluttering gently in the wind. He was staring ahead as if he could already see the Inheritance site, and the pair could see he was deep in thought.
Mei Lian hesitated for a moment, then pressed forward with Lin Yue at her side. The young woman was quiet, but her presence was steadying. Mei Lian’s fingers tightened into fists as she worried about how Jun De would react to her.
This was the first time they had spoken to Jun De since the Outer Valley, and she was afraid he would be upset that he had to save them.
Jun De turned toward them before they could speak as he sensed their approach. To Mei Lian’s relief, his expression was calm, and a gentle smile appeared on his face when he saw them. It was as though nothing had changed between them, as if he hadn’t put himself in danger to protect and rescue them.
“Senior Brother Jun. Thank you for what you did in the Outer Valley. We owe you our lives.” Mei Lian began, and her voice was steady despite her turbulent emotions.
Mei Lian bowed solemnly and was joined by Lin Yue a moment later.
“Were you harmed?” Lin Yue asked. Her voice was full of concern, and tears returned to the corners of her eyes.
Jun De’s smile widened, and the day seemed to become brighter to the pair of young women. He shook his head and chuckled.
“I am well. Receiving a few scratches is nothing compared to your safety.” Jun De waved his hand to dismiss their thanks, and Lin Yue blushed deeply.
Mei Lian wanted to protest, to tell him that his actions shouldn’t be brushed off. He had stepped into danger without hesitation to protect them. It was something that none of the other Disciples with them had done.
But something in Jun De’s expression and the way he spoke made her stop arguing with him. Instead, she stepped closer to the railing beside him and looked out at the clouds and the land that stretched far below them.
The trio talked more as the hours passed, and whatever tension or awkwardness between them was replaced by companionship. Jun De told them a little about what had happened in the Outer Valley, but the pair didn’t believe that he had just walked through the forest and collected herbs without seeing a single beast.
They knew how chaotic and dangerous the Outer Valley had been, and Mei Lian assumed that Jun De was just trying to make them feel better about running away and leaving him.
As time passed, the Elders would summon Jun De occasionally to discuss various things. Mei Lian, who was watching Jun De closely, noticed that he would rub his temples or his shoulders would sag slightly as he returned.
But Jun De would always ensure he was composed when he was around the other Outer Sect Disciples. It made Mei Lian appreciate just how much pressure was on Jun De and how thoughtful he was to spare everyone from seeing the burden he was carrying.
A day and a half passed in that rhythm before the Inheritance came into sight.
Mei Lian leaned over the railing next to Jun De and Lin Yue and stared at the lifeless plains below. Her heart tightened in her chest as she observed how the landscape was completely desolate, with not even a plant in sight.
The air shimmered with residual power, and it felt like the land had been wounded long ago and had never healed.
As the ship descended, Mei Lian saw that they weren’t the only ones to arrive. Tens of thousands of cultivators were spread across the edge of the rocky landscape in camps and loose formations, like ants drawn to a corpse. She could see robes in a dozen different colours, signifying other clans and Sects, but most of the cultivators were unaffiliated.
This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author's work.
Their ship descended toward a ridge overlooking the site, claiming a position of prominence as the cultivators stared at them with caution.
Mei Lian was sure that they worried the Tranquil Mountain Sect would drive them away, but Jun De informed her that the Sect didn’t want to be accused of monopolizing the inheritance.
Tranquil Mountain Sect was powerful, but even they had to worry about their reputation amongst the Orthodox Sects.
When it came time for them to disembark the ship, both Lin Yue and Mei Lian were filled with barely contained excitement. For Lin Yue, she thought about the artifacts and plants that she would find, while Mei Lian wanted the opportunity to show her growing skills to Jun De.
With all their Disciples off the ship, Elder Shen waved his hand, and the flying vessel shrank back to its small size and disappeared inside his storage ring.
The restrictions on the Inheritance would take a few more days to be removed, leaving the Disciples time to meditate and prepare or scout the area in advance.
“This time will be different, Sister Mei. We’ll prove our worth to Senior Brother Jun.” Lin Yue whispered, and Mei Lian nodded immediately.
They would seize this opportunity.
Page Break
Jun De sat cross-legged near the bow of the flying ship, his eyes closed in feigned meditation. He wasn’t cultivating, and he doubted he could even if he attempted it.
There wasn’t a point, not with the constant murmurs, sidelong glances, and the weight of everyone’s expectations pressing down on him.
‘I hate this! Why couldn’t I have just stayed in the Sect and relaxed?! I don’t even care about the inheritance.’ Jun De thought, and he hoped that something would happen to the ship that would force them to land, and he could be spared from all the bother of this expedition.
But the ship continued to fly through the air without a single problem. The clouds parted around it like majestic waves, and Jun De was sure that it felt like a mystical journey to most people on board, something out of a dream.
To Jun De, it felt like being locked in a flying coffin with too many eyes on him.
Jun De opened his eyes a crack and caught another cluster of Disciples staring at him. They would always look away when he met their gaze, pretending they were looking at something else.
But he could hear the whispers; they were still spreading those ridiculous rumours about him. Jun De was sure there were even more stories about his abilities and past that were lies that he hadn’t heard, but even the ones he was aware of were bad enough.
‘How could anyone believe that nonsense?!’
He didn’t fight against the beast tide in the Outer Valley, he never mastered a mysterious technique that makes him stronger than anyone else in the Outer Sect, and he certainly wasn’t hiding his cultivation.
But even the Elders seemed to believe the rumours!
Every few hours, they would gesture for him to come over in order to relay instructions or, worse, ask for his opinion on what he would do with new information the Elders received.
Jun De was resigned to giving them respectful answers in the best way he could, but he had no idea what to expect inside the Inheritance Site, and he certainly didn’t want to lead the charge into the unknown and risk his life!
Jun De let out a sigh and gave up on pretending to cultivate, choosing instead to stand at the railing and watch the clouds drift past for a while. He thought the view might calm him, or he might find something interesting on the ground, but it was just more forest, plains and sky.
He had flown on planes before, in his past life, and they had been pretty boring without something to watch on his phone or a book to read.
This trip was just torture.
At least he could talk with Mei Lian and Lin Yue to pass the time, and he enjoyed speaking with them. The pair would tell him about things he didn’t know about this world, and each time, he would come away with a hoard of new information to process.
Like how this world is many times bigger than his old one, or how there was an ocean separating the continents that couldn’t be crossed except by vessels owned by the largest sects, guarded by Core Formation Cultivators because of the demons and creatures that inhabit it.
‘Insanity, why would anyone want to go there?’ Jun De wondered, shaking his head at the idea.
Mei Lian and Lin Yue had thanked him for saving their lives, and he had responded honestly that they hadn’t needed to do that. In truth, what else was he going to do? Let them die?
He didn’t regret it for a moment, but he also didn’t think it was something to praise him for. What kind of world was he living in that rescuing two people was considered out of the ordinary instead of something expected?
When the ship finally, blessedly, began to descend, Jun De saw the Inheritance Site and remembered that this was only the next headache.
The land below was dead. Stone stretched in every direction, cracked and blackened by some kind of attack that had left the spiritual energy unable to repair the damage. The Qi felt thinner here like it had been scraped clean.
And, worse, there were people everywhere!
Tens of thousands of cultivators, some organized in neat encampments while others were in loose, ragged bands. Thankfully, no one had attacked each other yet, but Jun De could already feel the pressure of too many eyes on him, too many people plotting against him.
He exhaled slowly as the ship settled onto a ridge above the dead field where the restrictions still blocked access to the Inheritance Site. The moment the deck stopped vibrating beneath his feet, Jun De leapt off the ship and landed on the barren ground.
“Wonderful.” Jun De muttered dryly, soft enough that no one heard him.
