Chapter One: Heaven's First Floor

  The change in Sun You's facial expression was seen clearly by Shen Shi, who was standing beside him. What made him feel unexpected was that Sun You's initial facial expression seemed to have flashed a hint of gloom, but then suddenly became bright and cheerful in the shortest time possible. He waved his hand towards that side and responded with a "yes", looking like he was about to head over.

  At this moment, in the sky above Baisen Rock, a clear and sharp whistling sound suddenly came from the blue sky and white clouds, like thunder on a sunny day. For a time, everyone looked up, including those Lingxiao Sect disciples who were not exceptions.

  But then, a lone dragon with five-colored aura suddenly shot out from the clouds, swift as a shooting star, and descended onto the White Immortal Rock.

  Shen Shi's pupils slightly contracted, recognizing that this was clearly the work of a highly accomplished cultivator using divine techniques or driving a certain type of magical artifact. Generally speaking, after entering the inner sanctum of cultivation, from low to high, condensing the yuan, divine intention, and yuan dan, as well as the legendary Tian Gang realm, cultivators all have the possibility of flight. However, generally speaking, cultivators need to cultivate to the divine intention realm to be able to fly freely in the air, but even then, they would still be slower than using a flying artifact crafted by a skilled artisan; whereas cultivators at the condensing yuan realm may have slightly weaker abilities, but if they are lucky enough to obtain certain rare flying artifacts, they can also fly in the air. As for those who have reached the yuan dan or Tian Gang realms, great masters and true immortals, once they reach that level, their dao and techniques become all-powerful, allowing them to soar through the skies and traverse the earth with ease.

  At this moment, only the sword's aura was surging, and before it even reached the surface of the giant stone, a huge gust of wind had already been stirred up, causing the young men standing nearby to stumble backwards. A moment later, the rainbow light flashed by in an instant, stopping just three feet above the ground, as if a massive hammer had struck the giant stone with a loud crash. The five-colored rainbow light flickered slowly, and after a moment, it faded away, revealing two figures standing on top of the giant stone.

  One tall and one short, one big and one small.

  A slightly taller figure was a beautiful woman with a long sword on her back, and her attire was surprisingly the same as that of the Ling Xian Sect disciples around her. She had a clear face and sparkling eyes, and her gaze flowed like water, tender and lovely, just like the most beautiful flowers in spring. Beside this beautiful woman stood another young man, who looked to be over ten years old, with two lively eyes that kept sizing up the surroundings and the crowd.

  "Hmm..."

  Shen Shi suddenly heard a soft hissing sound coming from Sun You's mouth beside him, turned his head to look at him, and Sun You felt Shen Shi's gaze, shrugged and said in a low voice: "Don't think too much about it, that's someone from the Gan family, even if they're being polite, it doesn't matter."

  Shen Shi uttered an "oh" and turned his head again, this time with a few more curious glints in his eyes.

  In the past, humans and demons fought a bloody war, overthrowing the Tianyao Wangting dynasty that had ruled over the Hongmeng realms for tens of thousands of years. The six people who made great contributions were later revered as the "Six Saints". For ten thousand years since then, these six saintly families have continued to thrive, holding unique positions in human society and being revered by all under heaven.

  Yuan, Ji, Gan, Gu, Song, and Nangong. The Gan family ranked third among them. Gān Jǐngchéng, who was one of the Six Sages in the past, was the ancestor of the Gan family and also the first generation founder of Ling Xuan Sect.

  "That young man is named Gan Ze, the successor of the Gan family in this generation. If I remember correctly, the Gan family has not been prosperous in recent years, and Gan Ze seems to be the only son of the Gan family. The woman next to him is his younger sister, named Gan Wen Qing. Don't look at her young age, but she is already one of the top three among the younger generation of disciples under the Ling Xiao Sect, along with two other senior brothers, known as the Ling Xiao Three Swords. It is widely acknowledged that these three will be the most promising geniuses to reach the Yuan Dan boundary in the future."

  Shen Shi heard Sun You whispering beside him, and couldn't help but take a light breath of cool air. When he looked at the beautiful woman again, his eyes already had a few more parts of reverence.

  Ever since Gan Wenqing and Gan Zhe fell onto the White Immortal Rock, they immediately caused a stir among those young people. The ordinary children on the periphery didn't quite understand what was going on, but looking at the situation, they also knew that these two weren't ordinary people. In the circles of the aristocratic families' children, it quickly became a chorus of greetings, and many of the boys and girls standing in the center were smiling, waving their hands to greet Gan Zhe. It seemed that this young man was also quite familiar with everyone, and very well-liked.

  Gan Wenqing glanced over at the young master from a wealthy family, her face not showing much expression. She simply nodded to Gan Ze beside her and said, "Little Ze, you go."

  Gan Ze nodded obediently and walked into the group of young men, immediately surrounded by everyone like a moon surrounded by stars.

  Sun You looked in that direction for a while, then turned his head to Shen Shi and said: "You stay here by yourself for a while, I also have some friends over there who I know, I'll go say hello."

  "Go then," Shen Shi said with a smile.

  Sun You smiled and walked away with a spring in his step, soon finding himself at the center of the crowd. He laughed loudly, clapping one person on the shoulder and joking with another, clearly very popular. Even Gan Ze couldn't help but smile and wave when he saw him. The young man in white who had called him "Second Brother" earlier came over, and the two stood together, their faces bearing a resemblance to each other as they shook hands and exchanged warm greetings.

  Compared to the lively and familiar scene on that side, in the outer circle where Shen Shi was located, most of the commoner youths looked a bit unsightly at this moment. Many people were secretly glancing at the small circle within the crowd, some with envy, some with admiration, including those who went further, surrounding another small circle outside the twenty or so young men and women, also had many boys and girls' faces showing similar expressions.

  Shen Shi's heart seemed to have moved, and he subconsciously turned his head to look in a certain direction. He soon saw the little fatty Hou Sheng from before, who was now standing in the crowd with a smile on his face, intently staring at the young men in front of him, just like... a servant gazing at his master.

  Shen Shi suddenly furrowed his brow, feeling inexplicably uncomfortable in his heart, but then shook his head as if self-mocking, and silently turned away his gaze.

  Gan Wenqing brought Gan Ze down to the ground, and in front of the Ling Xiao Sect's disciples at Bai Xian Rock, someone came walking quickly. He was a young man who looked gentle but had a very handsome face. However, he didn't immediately come forward, instead watching as Gan Wenqing sent Gan Ze away before approaching with a smile: "Gan Shijie, why have you also come?" As he spoke, his gaze shifted and paused briefly on the departing Gan Ze, seemingly thinking of something in an instant, then laughed and said...

  "Ah, I see. So this must be the young master of the Gan family? No wonder you, Teacher Gan, personally escorted him."

  Gan Wenqing looked somewhat familiar with this young man, smiled slightly, and didn't say much, just nodded.

  The young man glanced over at the group of youngsters and turned back to Gan Wenqing with a smile, saying: "Sister, let's go ahead and talk."

  Gan Wen's eyes lifted, and she glanced forward, only to see that at the front end of the giant stone of Bai Xian Rock, several Ling Xiao Sect disciples were standing there. Among them was a man who looked around thirty years old, tall and majestic, with a strong and solemn demeanor, his face set in determination. He stood out among the group, and at this moment, he seemed to have noticed something, and was looking over from afar.

  Even from a distance, it seemed as if I could feel the man's piercing gaze, which had an intimidating aura.

  Gan Wen's bright eyes sparkled as she gazed at the man from afar, her expression seemingly smiling yet not quite. Suddenly, she turned to the young disciple in front of her and said, "Kang Zhen, what if I don't want to go?"

  The young man was taken aback, and his face immediately turned sour. He took a step closer, bowed his head, and smiled wryly, saying, "Sister, aren't you making things difficult for me?" As he spoke, his eyes glanced intentionally at the front of Baisen Rock, and he said, "Brother Wang Heng is standing up ahead, leading the way for the new disciples today. All the brothers who came out to escort us from the sect are led by him."

  Gan Wenqing smiled faintly, her eyes meeting the man's gaze once again. After a moment, the majestic man nodded slightly in acknowledgement. Although Gan Wenqing's expression remained calm, it was clear that she did not underestimate this man either. She hesitated for a moment before finally taking steps to walk over.

  The sea breeze blew gently, blowing over the giant stone from above. Although it was already a warm and blooming season, standing in this wind would still make one feel a bit chilly after a while. Those young people were all ordinary humans who had never practiced cultivation before, even those from noble families were no exception. After all, humans under the age of twelve should not start practicing cultivation yet. At this moment, many people quietly pulled their collars tighter. In contrast, the Ling Xiao Sect disciples standing at the edge of the giant stone looked relaxed and carefree, apparently their physical bodies had become different from ordinary people after cultivating, so they didn't mind this little cold wind at all.

  Gan Wenqing walked up to the front of Bai Xianyan, stood in front of the man and said calmly: "Wang Shixiong, did you call me over for something?"

  Wang Heng remained silent for a moment, but instead of speaking directly, he first slightly raised his chin to signal the people around him. Soon, everyone dispersed and retreated to a distance of over ten steps away. Then Wang Heng let out a faint sigh and said: "Wen Qing Shimei, I have not wronged you in any way recently, why are you treating me like this?"

  Gan Wen Qing slightly shook her head, her face calm and serene, saying: "Elder brother is worrying too much, I have always been like this, not speaking much and not liking to socialize, if there's any disrespect, please forgive me."

  Wang Heng smiled slightly, not taking it to heart. He turned around and looked forward with his hands behind his back. All he saw was the vast blue sea stretching out before him, with waves rising and falling in the distance. The horizon was a thin line where the sky and sea met, with clouds and mist swirling about. Ordinary people's eyesight couldn't make out anything, but Wang Heng and Gan Wenqing's cultivation allowed them to vaguely see a towering peak standing upright in the depths of the ocean, piercing the clouds and carrying an ethereal aura.

  After a moment, he said in a calm tone, "Let's just not bother with the children's affairs, shall we?"

  Gan Wen's face turned even paler, but she showed no signs of losing control. At the same time, her gaze drifted towards the distant sea, where the misty Xian Mountain floated. Suddenly, she let out a cold laugh and said: "Elder brother, I don't understand what you're saying. Our sect has rules for everything, but when it comes to welcoming new disciples, all that's required is for them to come to Bai Xian Rock. Could it be that elder brother can't bear the sight of me personally bringing Xiao Ze over?"

  Wang's thick eyebrows rose, gazing at Gan Wenqing, who didn't show any intention of avoiding him. The two locked eyes, and it seemed as if sparks were flying between them. The atmosphere in front of the Bai Xian Rock suddenly became tense.