Three Mysteries Sect, Venerable Bai's courtyard.
As one of three venerables and a sealed immortal, Lu Xuan's master had an isolated peak all to himself.
Almost three years had passed since Wang Mingyuan left for the Heavenly Secrets Province, and although Lu Xuan had been receiving infrequent letters, he admittedly found himself missing that unreliable, lazy fellow.
Seated by a shallow pond, watching the koi fish frolicking about, his focus shifted inwards.
His golden core was perfected, and his nascent soul just shy of being completed.
However, an imperfection lingered.
A regret and a debt he owed to this body's previous soul.
The grievances suffered in the Qin Dynasty must be addressed. Otherwise, complete harmony between his soul and this body was impossible.
He wanted to wait for Wang Mingyuan's return to the sect before leaving for the Qin Dynasty, but he cannot afford to suppress his cultivation any longer.
A secret realm is about to open, and the laws of this secret realm are maintained in a relatively stable state with complete Immortal Qi.
Using this Immortal Qi to sublimate one's nascent soul can increase one's affinity for the laws of heaven and earth.
As such, Lu Xuan's trip to the Qin Dynasty is a must. Luckily, his Master agreed to tag along and seek justice on his behalf.
He couldn't imagine how difficult and challenging this trip would have been if it weren't for his Master.
Old Man Bai appeared by Lu Xuan's side.
"Ready to go?" He asked, but he was already walking ahead. "This trip won't be simple. I'm far from being the only sealed immortal on the Ashveil Continent, let alone being the strongest. If your brother has a backing as well, we probably can't touch him."
Old Bai contemplated for a little and added with some uncertainty, "At most, I can guarantee a fair competition between you youngsters, as long as it doesn't threaten anyone's life."
Life and death in a spar between peers is usually the norm in the martial world, but sometimes, a faction's interest is on the line.
As the a continent or a small world is nearing the end of its lifespan, it usually explodes with untapped potential with the hopes of nurturing an unparalleled genius.
This genius is what draws the attention of the many forces in the Immortal Realm.
Granted, it's far too early to judge who among the numerous heroes of the younger generation is the chosen genius, but that's the fun part.
Gambling and making investments.
Old Bai decided to bet on Lu Xuan, which means some other force might have placed its bets on his brother the Crown Prince.
Lu Xuan understood these principles very well. He nodded his head. "I understand, Master. At least, I will collect some interest now and get the rest later. A gentleman can wait for vengeance."
…
"How cliche," leaning in a customized recliner of bamboo and thick banana leaves, Mingyuan sipped some coconut juice and watched the livestream.
A breeze blew by, and as the gentle currents of the meandering river carried him along, he enjoyed the feedback from his system.
Yes, the three years deadline was almost up.
Yes, he should hurry back to the sect and fulfill his promise of three years.
And yes… he wasn't planning on keeping his word.
On one hand, it felt like too much of a hassle to return to the sect only to start being lazy and doing absolutely nothing productive.
One the other hand, longer separations usually make relationships grow stronger, especially when you show up at an unexpected time to save the day.
Mingyuan realized that his intervention had derailed the protagonist's growth trajectory from the deserved hardships, so he decided to play the necessary evil card.
Well, he had absolutely no clue how to play evil, and he didn't have the energy for it either.
"I recall something about the resurgence of the Monster Kingdom close to the Qin Dynasty's borders, should I bring that disaster forward?" Mingyuan murmured to himself while sunbathing.
"This should have happened as the last challenge before Lu Xuan ascended, but he now has that Old Bai as a bodyguard, not to forget that Crown Prince. With the potential threat of the Monster Kingdom, both immortals will have their hands tied, giving Lu Xuan an opportunity."
Mingyuan rubbed his forehead and sighed in exasperation. He felt somewhat guilty because millions if not billions of innocent lives would be lost.
Then again, these people would have died in the disaster sooner or later. Their fate was preordained, this was an inevitable disaster.
Some might argue that well, a few hundred years later, the ones to fall are different people from now.
Well, Mingyuan couldn't care less.
"That settles it!" Mingyuan clapped his hands and stood up. "Guess I'll steal the identity of a future villain and become the Monster Envoy, connecting the two realms."
However, unlike the original envoy, Mingyuan didn't plan to die at the conclusion of this farce.
He would play the villain for a little bit and then quit, resign, backpedal, or whatever one might call it.
As his blue eyes gleamed with anticipation, Lu Xuan's body flickered, and he returned to his reclining position with a coconut in hand.
"No rush, this river will eventually run through the Qin Dynasty. Then again, if I revived the kingdom while Lu Xuan and the Crown Prince aren't engaged in their fight, who knows if they'd stick around to fight?"
Mingyuan shivered and murmured, "It's better to wait until they're crazy with anger and at the epitome of irrationality. This makes a better story… I can imagine the two fighting side by side, only for that naive fool Lu Xuan to be stabbed in the back. How terrifying. He might turn demon there and then…"
In Mingyuan's defense, this was to help Lu Xuan realize the significant influence the former body's soul has on his psyche.
Would a former Dao Lord care for the lives of a few hundred strangers? Maybe, but not to the point of losing rationality.
Today, Old Bai is around to hold down the fort.
Tomorrow? Does he expect Mingyuan to cover up for him? How foolish, that's too much work.
These emotionally driven protagonists with the power of friendship and love have long since gone extinct from the powerhouse chat group.
Life is just that cruel.
While thinking about it, Mingyuan switched channels from watching Lu Xuan to watching Liu Tianji.
By now, the young girl had arrived at the Heavenly Secrets Pavilion in the Immortal Realm.
A neutral force that focuses on divination, fortune telling, and information gathering.
They are also responsible for ranking the various young talents and mature powerhouses throughout the realm, through their list for powerhouses above the Sector Lord status is confidential.
"Eh? Is that mature technology?" Mingyuan sat upright, feeling truly shocked.
Liu Tianji was fiddling with what looked like a wristband, though it had a feature for projecting holographic imagery.
It was something along the lines of an interstellar network.
Honestly, Mingyuan hadn't expected this universe to have such advanced technology.
Then again, this was more reliable than using something like communication talismans or paper cranes, especially when distances start being measured by light years, star fields, and galaxies.
Thinking about it, this was only natural.
The question is, why was technology lacking on the Ashveil Continent? Or maybe cultivation had consumed the majority of people's thinking, and for the lack of need or motive, technology wasn't developed here?
Mingyuan scratched his head in confusion.
In any case, he quickly tossed the idea to the back of his mind.
Since Liu Tianji was going through the recent information available on the network, Mingyuan decided to join in on the fun from a higher perspective.
So, he returned to a relaxed posture, grabbed a new coconut, then snapped it open with familiar ease in preparation for the livestream.