Cloudvoid

After Yan Jue’s match ended, the crowd buzzed with discussion, still reliving the danger of the fight.

Lin Xi stepped down from the platform and only felt darkness surge before her eyes. She pressed a hand to her temple and nearly fainted.

Ji Guiyan hurried forward and caught her. “Senior Sister, are you all right?”

“Are you feeling unwell...?” Ji Guiyan asked worriedly. “You seemed a little off just now.”

Lin Xi had looked perfectly fine before going up, but at this moment the center of her brow was darkened, and her eyes were bloodshot. She really did not look normal...

Lin Xi: “Maybe I didn’t rest well yesterday. I’m going back to sleep now.”

“I’ll go with you.”

-

Yan Jue slowly walked down from the martial platform and also found the situation rather odd.

At first, Lin Xi’s gaze toward her had been perfectly normal; in the blink of an eye, though, it had turned as if she wanted to kill her.

But she didn’t think too much of it. Under the sun, she followed the flow of people to the easternmost martial platform.

An elegant bell chime rang out from afar, echoing through the verdant mountains.

Qi Xianqing wore a pale snow-blue layered skirt with a crossed collar and narrow sleeves; she stood on the martial platform with her hands behind her back.

Under the sunlight, Qi Xianqing looked straight ahead. Her fair face was as cold as frost and snow, her aura deep and distant.

Qi Xianqing looked calmly at her opponent.

The Five-Dragon Summit had already reached the second half of the competition. As long as she won three more matches, she would claim first place and live up to her master’s expectations.

In any case, she had to win.

During duels, Qi Xianqing did not much like prolonged battles. Matches that dragged on too long were prone to accidents.

The two overtime matches she had fought with Yunjie last year were exactly like that.

So this time, Qi Xianqing tried to settle every bout within half a cup of tea.

Behind Qi Xianqing, the immortal sword Zhuying shimmered in the sunlight with a dignified sheen.

Across from Qi Xianqing stood a woman beautiful enough to be mistaken for a fairy.

Bai Chuli was the second daughter of the Bai family and had been born with a passion for high-stakes gambling.

She was also exceptionally gifted in cultivation and had smoothly made it to the fourth round of the competition, where she happened to draw Qi Xianqing.

Bai Chuli cupped her fists toward Qi Xianqing. “I’m Bai Chuli, a disciple of Muyin Sect. I’ve long admired Senior Sister Qi’s name. To be able to spar with Senior Sister today is truly a blessing beyond three lifetimes.”

At once, everyone below the stage noticed something was off.

It was normal enough to introduce oneself before a match...

“How come I feel like Senior Sister Bai is a little bit... fawning over Senior Sister?”

“Oh my god, now that you mention it, I think so too.”

On the platform, Bai Chuli stared at Qi Xianqing with a gaze so heated it was almost impossible to describe.

Being able to face Qi Xianqing on the martial platform was truly a rare opportunity.

Bai Chuli meeting Qi Xianqing naturally made her wildly excited.

As someone from one of the four great aristocratic families, Bai Chuli was like Yunjie; she had made catching up to Qi Xianqing the goal of her life.

Bai Chuli formed a hand seal with both hands and summoned the sword behind her. The snow-white immortal sword floated at once in the air, radiating a sacred glow.

Looking at Qi Xianqing with deep affection, Bai Chuli kept talking with tireless enthusiasm. “This sword is called Liusu. It was forged with a millennium crystal core. Please guide me, Senior Sister.”

Yet Qi Xianqing remained utterly oblivious to her fervor. With a lift of her right hand, Zhuying behind her slowly rose.

The bluish-gray sword Zhuying bloomed with a faint swordlight in the sky, like a crouching tiger biding its time.

The match began.

In an instant, Qi Xianqing gripped the hilt with one hand; her body blurred into a streak of afterimage as she moved toward Bai Chuli.

Bai Chuli’s pupils contracted. She formed a hand seal, and the immortal sword Liusu immediately appeared before her to block the incoming strike.

“Boom!!”

The two swords collided; the thunderous sound was like a bolt from a clear sky, deafeningly loud.

A sharp pain shot through Bai Chuli’s chest, and her qi and blood churned violently for an instant.

She had never expected Zhuying’s single strike to be so formidable.

Bai Chuli quickly steadied herself. The immortal sword Liusu trembled in the air for a moment, then flashed with dazzling light and surged forward again.

Qi Xianqing’s expression was solemn. She raised her sword again, and the two blades slammed together once more.

This was the true duel of sword cultivators; there was no flashy nonsense, only the simple collision of two immortal swords.

Gradually, the speed of their exchanges in midair grew faster and faster.

Qi Xianqing’s gaze was as sharp as lightning, her expression cold. Zhuying flashed blue-green light in the air.

Every one of her attacks had a clear purpose; she was searching for the opening in her opponent’s defensive barrier!

The immortal sword Liusu was an ice-type sword. Wherever it passed, frost spread across the martial platform.

Qi Xianqing still showed no expression. She narrowed her eyes and looked up, seeming finally to have found the opening in the barrier.

Liusu trembled violently in the air and screeched as it shot toward Qi Xianqing.

Qi Xianqing suddenly tossed Zhuying upward with her right hand, hurling the immortal sword directly into the sky!

“Boom!!” Another deafening impact echoed through the valley, especially crisp and pleasant to the ear.

Zhuying took Liusu’s blow head-on and hung stably in the air. By contrast, Liusu simply could not withstand a direct clash with Zhuying and was forced backward.

Qi Xianqing formed a mountain seal with both hands. Zhuying floated in the air at once, its bluish-dark glimmer flashing as clouds and rosy mist billowed around it with immortal grace.

Bai Chuli’s expression tightened.

The Five-Dragon Summit was underway recently, and the masters of every sect were stuffing their disciples full of supplements; as for pills, they practically wished to cram every last one into their disciples’ stomachs. As a result, many disciples had recently broken through into the Fusion Realm.

Bai Chuli was no exception. More importantly, she came from the Dinghai Bai family and had grown up surrounded by immortal arts, so she naturally possessed a keen instinct for a cultivator’s supernatural abilities.

Zhuying hovered in midair, quiet but concealing a danger like a storm on the horizon.

Qi Xianqing lifted her gaze. Those clear peach-blossom eyes looked over without missing a thing, and her mouth moved low as she chanted a sword incantation.

Zhuying suddenly erupted with a dragon’s roar in the air, shaking the four directions!

Sword Technique: Shaking the Earth.

Yan Jue stared blankly from below the platform, cold sweat surging up her forehead.

She had seen Duan Luxi use this sword technique before.

But when Qi Xianqing used it, it was completely different from Duan Luxi!

Right now on the martial platform, she was unstoppable.

Zhuying’s blade suddenly expanded until it was as tall as two people. A blue-green sword light sliced through the sky; Zhuying came screaming in like a cannonball, directly smashing Bai Chuli’s defensive barrier to pieces!

Too... too fast...

The crowd erupted in an uproar.

Normally speaking, a cultivator’s barrier was not so easy to break. To shatter one, one usually relied on skill, like finding the key point and slipping through it with flexibility.

But Zhuying only needed one violent strike to smash straight through the opponent’s barrier, which showed just how terrifying its power was!

Bai Chuli’s face was grave. Cold sweat covered her head, and her feet had begun to tremble uncontrollably.

Before everyone could even react, blue-green light flashed again.

Qi Xianqing had already seized Zhuying once more. She bent slightly to ease the recoil, and the next instant a sharp sword aura cut past Bai Chuli’s side.

Heaven and earth changed color.

“Sword Technique: One Thought.”

The Thunderflame Sect’s exclusive sword skill; it was said to be a demon-slaying sword technique that could kill an opponent in a single thought and was not something ordinary people could use.

Yet Qi Xianqing was able to wield it so expertly, which only showed that her control of swordsmanship had already reached perfection.

This sword aura, laden with tremendous force, swept toward her. Bai Chuli’s pretty face instantly went pale, and she quickly formed a seal again to raise a barrier in defense.

But Zhuying’s sword aura was like a hot knife through butter; it swept straight past her and charged toward the immortal sword Liusu above her head.

On the martial platform, of course you could not directly kill your opponent.

So every ruthless attack Qi Xianqing made was aimed at the other side’s magical weapon.

The sound shook the four directions; mountains seemed to split and the earth to crack.

The immortal sword Liusu collided with the blue sword aura and was jolted in midair, then sent flying in an instant.

Bai Chuli only felt a sharp pain in her chest. Her footing went soft, and she dropped straight to her knees.

-

The match was over.

Bai Chuli held her immortal sword in her arms, her face full of disbelief.

“How could this be... how could this be...” Bai Chuli murmured.

Yunjie stood beside her and comforted her. “Qi Xianqing is basically a maniac. You’re a normal person; how could you possibly win against her?”

Bai Chuli: “But it’s already the fourth round. Isn’t losing this badly a little too embarrassing, waah...”

Yunjie: “You were lucky. Your previous opponents weren’t much, which is why you made it to the fourth round...”

Right. Senior Sister Yunjie was also very strong, but because she ran into Qi Xianqing in the second round, she had...

Suddenly, they heard a series of footsteps from over there.

Yunjie immediately tensed and turned her head. Standing behind them was Qi Xianqing, hands behind her back, looking at them faintly.

Yunjie became alert at once and stepped back. “What do you want?”

Qi Xianqing: “I’d like to discuss some private matters with Junior Sister Bai.”

“Private matters? Can’t you discuss them here?”

Qi Xianqing raised her peach-blossom eyes. “It’s all the same wherever we discuss them.”

Then she took out a receipt from behind her and slowly unfolded it.

The moment Bai Chuli saw the receipt, her pupils contracted sharply.

Qi Xianqing: “My junior sister’s spirit beast went to the Spirit Beast Hall and stole three Profound Beast Bloodline Pills. Junior Sister Bai had her pay three thousand top-grade Spirit Stones.”

Bai Chuli immediately wanted to argue, but with Qi Xianqing’s receipt right here, there was no arguing her way out of it.

Good heavens, yesterday she had even asked Yan Jue what she wanted the receipt for. So that was why...

But when had Yan Jue gotten mixed up with Qi Xianqing?!

Qi Xianqing: “The Profound Beast Bloodline Pills are indeed precious, but their value is not that high. Three pills are worth only six hundred top-grade Spirit Stones.”

Bai Chuli’s pretty face turned grim. She bit down hard and said, “What do you want?”

Qi Xianqing looked at her expressionlessly, lowered her eyes, and said, “Just return the extra two thousand four hundred Spirit Stones.”

This time Bai Chuli was frightened stiff. With that murderous fiend standing right in front of her, she did not dare say no at all.

But where was she supposed to get the money? She had already lost all her money at the Jade Terrace.

Yunjie walked over and glared at Qi Xianqing coldly. “Junior Sister Bai doesn’t have any money at all. You’re bullying people too much.”

Qi Xianqing: “If you don’t want to be bullied, then you shouldn’t have bullied others in the first place.”

“Junior Sister probably doesn’t want a note in the Law Enforcement Hall’s records either. I’ll give you half a day. Return the Spirit Stones this afternoon, or you know the consequences.”

Yunjie’s expression changed.

Five Dragons Mountain had five main peaks, and each peak handled its own duties.

For example, Muyin Sect managed spirit beasts, Watercloud Sect managed discipline...

Thunderflame Sect handled the law.

The Law Enforcement Hall on Five Dragons Mountain had always been a fearsome existence. No one wanted to kneel under the cold waterfall for two hours.

Bai Chuli’s matter was neither too big nor too small; it was not enough to send her to the Law Enforcement Hall.

But if the Law Enforcement Hall deliberately made things difficult, then that was another matter.

She had swindled so much money out of Yan Jue. She had been in the right, and now she was no longer in the right at all.

Meeting Qi Xianqing’s gaze, Bai Chuli clenched her silver teeth. “I’ll pay it back!”

-

After watching Qi Xianqing’s match, Yan Jue went to see several other bouts as well.

To avoid the crowding that would follow the end of the matches, Yan Jue came back first.

When Yan Jue returned to Watercloud Sect, Bai Ying was waiting for her at the entrance.

Recently, Yan Jue had grown increasingly confident in Bai Ying’s ability to handle things. The Hundred-Through-Hellight Immortal Arts talisman tokens had already been used up, so she did not go buy more. Instead, she had Bai Ying lie low in the cliffside cave every day to investigate the situation.

Bai Ying stared at her, her expression somewhat grave.

Yan Jue asked, “What is it?”

Bai Ying: “The matter of the master entering the cave to take the treasure has been discovered by that Demon Lord.”

Yan Jue paused slightly.

In this world, immortal arts were powerful, but they had limits.

For instance, the immortal art Yan Jue often used on Bai Ying, Hundred-Through-Hellight, had to be placed on some living thing in order to perceive through other objects what it saw.

A similar immortal art was Sight Through Heaven and Earth.

That was the bluish light Yan Jue had seen in the cave that day.

The Demon Lord used Sight Through Heaven and Earth to communicate with Chu Fu.

Sight Through Heaven and Earth did not require any external aid to cast; it was a more orthodox version of hearing far and seeing far.

However, this immortal art also had limitations.

It could only be cast on places one had previously reached, and unlike Hundred-Through-Hellight, it could not provide a full and genuine range of sensory perception.

For example, if you used Sight Through Heaven and Earth to reach a room, you could only see the door.

If you wanted to see outside the window, you had to expend a large amount of spiritual power and reapply the target to the area outside the window.

By then, you had usually already spent spiritual power twice over.

Casting immortal arts consumed immense spiritual power, so the Demon Lord had not been able to discover in time that someone had entered his cave.

The immortal arts of this world were formidable, but they were not all-powerful.

Bai Ying: “Master guessed correctly. That Demon Lord really seems to have changed bodies at some point. After he discovered the treasures in the cave were missing, he told Chu Fu that they would make contact somewhere else from now on, as if he had abandoned that cave.”

Yan Jue frowned.

The Demon Lord was seriously injured. By rights, he should not have gone far. He could only still be within Five Dragons Sect.

Those who had been involved that night were Du Ying, Duan Luxi, Elder Li Tian, Li Hao, and...

Yan Jue’s brows suddenly drew together. A frightening thought flashed through her mind.

Yan Jue: “Go follow Chu Fu now and see where he went tonight.”

She also found time to make another trip to Five Dragons Market and buy five talisman tokens storing the immortal art Hundred-Through-Hellight.

To prevent Bai Ying from falling into danger, she also bought several Breath-Concealing Pills.

Yan Jue crushed a talisman token, applied the Hundred-Through-Hellight immortal art to Bai Ying, and had Bai Ying eat two Breath-Concealing Pills before sending her off to tail Chu Fu.

As for Yan Jue herself, she sat on her bed, her expression stern as she kept track of Bai Ying’s every move.

It was already dusk.

Bai Ying turned into a fly and lurked outside Chu Fu’s dormitory for a long time before finally waiting for Chu Fu to open the door.

The young man wore a black night suit. He was handsome, and every movement he made radiated the aura of a Fusion Realm expert.

But in Bai Ying’s eyes, it was indescribably revolting.

A Foundation Establishment cultivator had instantly broken through to the Fusion Realm; was that not because he had taken so many of her master’s pills? What was there to be proud of?

Chu Fu walked up the mountain path and even looked back warily, as if very alert to being followed.

He quickly reached Mystic Escape Sect, took a series of twists and turns, and came to a rather exquisite courtyard.

The courtyard grounds were large, enclosed by a fence outside. Inside, the grass was lush, and spiritual plants had been planted throughout.

Bai Ying hurried after him and suddenly noticed something; she stopped short.

At the courtyard entrance, there was actually a barrier set up.

The barrier shimmered with faint golden light; it was the sort of barrier only a great expert of the sixth realm or above could create!

It seemed the Demon Lord had already become cautious.

Bai Ying anxiously sent a transmission to Yan Jue. “Master, what do we do? The outside of the courtyard is covered in barriers. If I force my way in, I’ll be discovered.”

Yan Jue sat on her bed, her brows tightly knit as she began to feel troubled.

What now.

If Bai Ying could not follow Chu Fu in, then she would not be able to obtain the Demon Lord’s latest information.

Yan Jue suddenly remembered something and immediately took out her Qiankun bag to search through it; then she pulled out the cyan paper oil umbrella.

That day, Qi Xianqing had taken the doubtful magical artifact away to send it to the Refining Hall.

This umbrella was harmless enough, so it had been left behind.

This “Cloudvoid Umbrella” looked like nothing more than an ordinary umbrella that could make people invisible.

But Yan Jue knew how formidable it truly was.

The Cloudvoid Umbrella’s function was by no means limited to invisibility.

Yan Jue opened the Cloudvoid Umbrella. She only felt a slight fluctuation of spiritual power over her head, and her body was covered by the oil-paper umbrella.

...

Holding the Cloudvoid Umbrella, Yan Jue stepped onto the mountain path leading to Mystic Escape Sect.

Yan Jue moved as swiftly as the wind along the mountain road. She had already practiced lightness skill, so she reached Mystic Escape Sect in no time.

She held the oil-paper umbrella and encountered many Mystic Escape Sect disciples along the way, but astonishingly, not a single one of them saw her.

It was as though she had vanished into thin air.

Yan Jue quickly arrived at the courtyard where Bai Ying was. She could already hear the sound of flowing water inside. Two rather elegant bamboo poles supported the courtyard entrance, and a plaque was hung above it with the three large characters: Ice Spring Pavilion.

This was... the courtyard the Five-Dragon Sect Master liked to visit most.

Bai Ying, still transformed into a fly, was anxiously circling outside the fence, yet she still did not see Yan Jue.

Yan Jue sent her a transmission. “I’m here; come over.”

The little fly paused, then slowly flew over. After finally finding the right spot, it entered the umbrella and clung to Yan Jue’s clothes.

Yan Jue held the oil-paper umbrella and came to the golden barrier. She instinctively closed her eyes, gritted her teeth, and stepped across it.

She actually... passed straight through the barrier!

Yan Jue looked back at the faint golden glow and let out a slight breath of relief.

It seemed this barrier really was ineffective against the Cloudvoid Umbrella.

This umbrella could make a person disappear directly; it could even hide one’s tracks from the heavens themselves!

Yan Jue strode straight into the courtyard and indeed saw Chu Fu and the Demon Lord’s figures beneath the fruit trellis ahead.

Looking at the large and small figures in front of her, Yan Jue could not help but frown slightly.

No, that was not the Demon Lord.

That was the Five-Dragon Sect Master, Mu Zhongzi.

Mu Zhongzi wore a daoist robe and had a ruddy face. He turned around and stared at Chu Fu.

Chu Fu lowered his eyes, his entire body radiating a thick, gloomy aura; the fists hanging at his sides were also tightly clenched.

Yan Jue froze.

It seemed the black-vein pill she had fed the male lead that day had indeed affected him to some degree.

The Demon Lord asked, “What’s wrong? You seem unhappy.”

Chu Fu’s voice was hoarse and low. “I’ve had enough.”

“Hm?”

Chu Fu: “No one in Five Dragons Sect understands me. In those people’s eyes, I’m just a joke.”

The Demon Lord: “Don’t speak like that. The person who understands you best is me.”

Chu Fu: “I really want to...”

For some reason, ever since the day he had taken in Yan Jue’s yin essence, a thick streak of fierceness had appeared in Chu Fu’s heart.

That ferocity piled up within him, as if it could erupt at any moment.

Before Chu Fu could finish, the Demon Lord cut him off sharply.

The Demon Lord: “The time isn’t ripe yet. Don’t think about doing that.”

The air fell briefly silent.

Chu Fu lowered his eyes. “May I ask how Your Excellency’s new body is?”

The Demon Lord: “Don’t call me Your Excellency anymore in the future; if others hear it, they’ll inevitably become suspicious. Just call me Sect Master.”

Chu Fu immediately said, “Yes, Sect Master.”

Now that Mu Zhongzi’s body belonged to the Demon Lord, he stared into the night sky above and said, “Back then, the Five-Dragon Sect Master Mu Zhongzi severely injured me at Chalk Mountain. He never would have imagined that I would seize his body while he was in closed cultivation, desperately weak after making a breakthrough.”

The dim light gave Mu Zhongzi’s face an even more sinister cast.

“This body still hasn’t fully adjusted to me.”

Chu Fu frowned. “But the Five-Dragon Sect Master was devoted to the Dao. How could you have found an opening?”

The Demon Lord: “Wasn’t it because of his greed? He was too eager for success, so he went berserk during closed cultivation. In the struggle for his body, he lost to me, which let me occupy it.”

“And it was all thanks to that bottle of Yin Spirit Water of mine. It greatly increased the strength of my soul, allowing me to successfully seize his body!”

Yin Spirit Water!

Yan Jue’s pupils narrowed slightly.

That day, when she and Qi Xianqing searched the Hundred Treasures Pouch, they really had found a bottle of Yin Spirit Water!

The Demon Lord asked, “You used the demonic Soul-Burning Gu technique on the plaza today?”

Chu Fu: “Yes.”

Yan Jue froze.

What? Soul-Burning Gu technique? Today on the martial platform, had Lin Xi suddenly lost control in front of her because of Chu Fu?

“I just got too angry seeing that woman, so I...”

The Demon Lord cut him off. “Don’t use forbidden arts in broad daylight again. If you’re discovered, it’s over!”

Chu Fu choked on his words. “Yes...”

The Demon Lord stood with his hands behind his back and said faintly, “I already gave the elder arranging tomorrow’s matchups a subtle reminder to write your name together with that Pure Yin Physique.”

Chu Fu froze; his face darkened at once. “Tomorrow’s match is actually against Yan Jue?!”

The Demon Lord: “Exactly. You’ll fight her tomorrow and have a fair, open duel. At that time, I’ll directly increase the power of the Heavenly Divination Array to aid you, and then you can just kill her.”

Chu Fu was stunned. “Is it okay to kill someone on the martial platform too?”

The Demon Lord: “An accidental killing is fine. A duel between cultivators isn’t children playing house; casualties are perfectly normal!”

“She had her yin essence taken by you, so her body is already weak. When the time comes, carry this item with you, and I’ll help you from the side!”

Then the Demon Lord raised a hand, and a jade seal the color of green-blue jade instantly rolled down before Chu Fu.

Chu Fu cried out, “It’s the Evil God Demon Seal!”

Yan Jue, watching from the side, was also covered in cold sweat.

The Evil God Demon Seal was a jade seal held jointly in ancient times by the Demon Lord of Soul-Severing Mountain and the Demon Lord of Jueming Valley.

The seal symbolized the glory of the demon race, and within it were countless wronged souls and resentful spirits.

She remembered that in the original story, when the male lead fell into demonic cultivation, what he held in his hand was this very seal.

“That girl may have been too ashamed to report the fact that you took her yin essence that day, but keeping a mouth around is always a hidden danger.”

After saying that, the Demon Lord smiled and said, “Only the dead are the safest.”

Chu Fu: “But what about Senior Sister? She also knows what happened that day. Your Excellency, why not just...”

Chu Fu gritted his teeth and said decisively, “Anyway, besides her, there are other outstanding disciples in the sect.”

The Demon Lord: “I’m keeping her for other uses! Don’t think of touching her.”

Chu Fu was left speechless, his face gloomy. “Y-yes.”

“Has Your Excellency found any news about that treasure thief? That person is truly detestable.”

The Demon Lord: “He’s in the shadows, and we’re in the open. Of course he’s hard to find.”

The Demon Lord naturally understood the uses of his several magical treasures very well, especially that Cloudvoid Umbrella, which was particularly precious. One only had to open the umbrella and hold it above one’s head to conceal oneself from the heavens themselves; even a person with extremely high cultivation would have trouble discovering its traces.

But that umbrella was a secret treasure of the demonic sect and had never been made public.

So ordinary people simply could not possibly know it had such a miraculous use, let alone have the courage to approach them carrying an umbrella.

The Demon Lord was very confident about this point.

After they finished speaking, both of them turned and walked outside.

Yan Jue held the umbrella and stood in the courtyard, as if plunged into an ice cellar.

When Mu Zhongzi passed by, she felt the immense pressure unintentionally emitted by a great expert of the eighth realm.

The disparity in strength was simply too enormous.

The Demon Lord suddenly frowned and glanced this way, then reached out as if to grab her.

Yan Jue frowned slightly and instinctively tightened her grip on the cold sleeve arrow in her hand, only to find that the Demon Lord’s hand passed straight through her body.

Yan Jue looked down and saw that under the umbrella’s protection, even her own body had become transparent.

The Demon Lord caught a few mosquitoes flitting about at random, crushed them to death with a hard squeeze, and then turned and slowly walked away.