Chapter One: Heaven's First Floor

  Jin Hong Mountain is an overseas immortal mountain, known as the first in the south of the Hongmeng boundary. Apart from the majestic and towering main peak that reaches the clouds, there are countless large and small islands surrounding it, like a multitude of stars surrounding the moon. The Qingyu Six Islands where Shen Shi and other new disciples are located is just one of them, situated in a remote location.

  In the vast and boundless ocean, these islands are like scattered fairy children, varying in size and each with its own unique characteristics, dotting the crystal-clear beautiful sea surface. Some islands are desolate and quiet, while others are bustling and extraordinary. Many of them have inherited the spiritual energy of the Golden Rainbow Mountain, seeming to be the dwelling places of immortals. They were carefully developed by the Ling Xiao Sect and occupied by important figures within the sect, becoming excellent cultivation caves.

  A streak of white light flashed across the azure sky, slowly circling twice above a small island at the southernmost tip of the Golden Rainbow Islands before gently descending.

  This small island looks about 100 hectares in size, with a flat front and a mountainous back. From afar, it resembles an old turtle lying in the water. The island is covered with ancient trees, a lush green forest, and white seagulls floating in the sea breeze. Their reflections ripple on the calm, light blue waters surrounding the island, adding to its serene atmosphere.

  The white light slowly fell onto the sandy beach in front of the small island, and a small path began from here, winding its way into the dense forest ahead. After several turns, it was blocked from view by the lush foliage, and it was unclear where it would lead. And after the white light flickered for a moment, it slowly dissipated, revealing the figure of a handsome young man, who was none other than Kang Chen, a disciple of the Ling Xuan Sect.

  At this moment, Kang Zhen looked like he was facing a great enemy, every move cautious and prudent, not daring to be careless. After landing on the beach, he immediately tidied up his clothes, then sincerely and solemnly knelt down towards the dense forest, paying respects with three bows. Only then did he say loudly:

  "Disciple Kang Chen, one of the four disciples under the true man of Huaiyuan, has something important to report to his master and asks for forgiveness for disturbing his master's quiet meditation."

  The voice was loud and clear, echoing across the beach, but for some reason, there was no reaction from the dense forest. Kang Zhen suddenly felt embarrassed, wanting to shout again, but what if the master on the island was in meditation, and he disturbed him? Wouldn't that be a huge mistake? If he turned around and left, wouldn't it be a waste of time? Besides, he had already kneeled down here, and if he turned silent and walked away, Master would think he was being disrespectful, which would also be a serious offense.

  It's hard to walk or not, and it's even more unbearable to kneel on the beach. Kang Xun didn't dare get up for a while, and could only wait dryly. In his mind, he couldn't help but recall Wang Heng's words again:

  "Even if you were to beg all the elders in the sect, including Master Hua Yuan and Master Yun Nian, or even Elder Sun who was scolded by Brother Du, it would be of no use. The key to everything lies in the fact that Brother Du's words implicated Master Shu Zu, an ancestor who holds a position not far from the highest in the sect. Even Master Hua Yuan shows great respect for him. That is why Brother Du was heavily punished and locked up in the Black Cloud Cave. As long as Master Shu Zu does not speak out, no one will dare to release Brother Du from the cave. If you want to save him, there is only one way: personally go to Xuan Gui Island and kneel down to beg Master Shu Zu. If he speaks out, everything will be resolved..."

  Kang Zhen and that Du Shixiong have been sworn brothers for many years, with a deep affection. Previously, he had been racking his brains to rescue this impulsive and unruly brother from the Black Cloud Cave, but ended up hitting a wall everywhere. It wasn't until yesterday that Wang Heng couldn't bear it anymore and privately reminded him on Qingyu Island, which led to today's trip to Xuan Gui Island.

  But I've heard that this Master's temper isn't particularly good...

  Kang Zhen knelt on the beach, a heart secretly hung up, only feeling the warm sun in the sky shining on his body, although there was not much heat, his back seemed to be carrying a ball of fire, as if it was some kind of scorching pain, and his heart also secretly became anxious.

  He knelt for a long time, his body was strong and his physical strength was far superior to that of ordinary people. He didn't feel particularly tired, but mentally he was getting more and more tense. The sweat on his forehead had seeped out drop by drop, and finally began to drip onto the sand in front of him, slowly sinking into the sand.

  At last, he could no longer bear it, gritted his teeth, suddenly raised his head and said loudly: "Disciple Kang Chen, requests to see Master Shu Zu, hopes Master Shu Zu will show mercy, disciple indeed has an important matter..."

  Before the words had fallen, a faint and feeble voice came from an unknown place deep in the dense forest, saying in a flat tone without any ups and downs: "What's going on?"

  Kang Zhen suddenly felt a surge of energy, and hastily bowed his head, subconsciously knocking three more times before saying: "Disciple pays respects to Master Shu Zu, today I came forward with trepidation, it's about the matter of my senior brother Du Tianxiong. His temperament is impulsive, that day he debated with Elder Sun, unintentionally mentioning Master Shu Zu, thus being captured by our benevolent master Huiyuan Zhenren and heavily punished, entering the Black Cloud Cave. That Black Cloud Cave's yin energy assaults people, harming their Dao, Du Shixiong usually respects Master Shu Zu, absolutely without any intention of offending... all this is truly a misunderstanding, I beseech Master Shu Zu to save..."

  Just as he was saying this, Kang Zhen suddenly felt that the sandy ground beneath him had come to life, like a strange beast, and suddenly moved. A powerful force burst forth from the depths of the earth, and his body, which had reached the peak of the Condensed Origin Realm, was completely out of control, as if it were an ordinary person with no strength at all. He was flipped over and flew tens of meters away before crashing into the sea.

  With a "splash", water splashed everywhere, Kang Zhen's whole body was drenched, but at this moment the fear in his heart had already surpassed everything else. He only felt his ears buzzing and his mind going blank, leaving only one thought, which was "Has Master Shu Zu gotten angry? Has Master Shu Zu gotten angry......"

  Far, far away, he flipped over and knelt in the seawater again, not daring to move even if his whole body was disheveled, with water droplets constantly falling. And from the dense forest in the distance, that ancient voice seemed to carry a few hints of coldness, saying coldly: "A third-generation disciple, dare to argue with seniors and elders face-to-face, and even insult them with sharp words, what kind of logic is this? Is this what you call respecting your elders?"

  Kang Zhen's whole body trembled slightly, and he didn't dare say another word.

  That hoary voice seemed to hum coldly, saying: "What kind of disciple did Cen Huaiyuan teach? Did he ruin their brains or something? Let him come over and see me, I'll have a good talk with him."

  Having said that, the voice ceased and there was no more sound emitted.

  In the sea, Kang Zhen's whole body was soaked, kneeling for a long time, his heart sank, and for a moment he had an urge to cry. Not only did this Du Shixiong fail to save him, but it seemed that he had also brought a big trouble to his master, Hua Yuan Zhenren!

  What can be done about it?

  Green Fish Island, Red Clam Village.

  Seastar stared at Shen Shi, subconsciously retreating two steps, and said in shock: "What's wrong with you? Why are you taking off your clothes?"

  Shen Shi raised his head and looked at her, saying: "What's wrong? I remember yesterday you didn't seem to care that much?"

  The starfish thought for a moment and said, "I don't care if you wear clothes or not, but since you're here to peel and kill shrimp, why do you need to take off all your clothes... uh?" She seemed to have thought of something and looked as if she had gained some insight.

  Shen Shi chuckled and walked over, casually placing the clothes he had taken off on a more distant beach. Wearing only his undershorts and with his upper body exposed, he said, "These ghost-faced prawns have too much blood, even if I just kill them carelessly, my clothes will still get dirty. I might as well take them off, that way I won't have to bother washing them later."

  Under the sunshine, Shen Shi's body was white and slender on the sandy beach. Although he didn't have a particularly strong physique with bulging muscles, he still gave off a healthy and well-proportioned impression. The Red Clam tribe naturally looked at humans differently from their own kind, often with a familiar gaze that saw right through them. The sea star was no exception, but this time it took an extra glance at Shen Shi, its cheeks inexplicably feeling a few degrees warmer. It felt a little strange in its heart, but didn't pay much attention to it and shrugged: "Suit yourself."

  Shen Shi smiled, walked to the edge of the shrimp cage, picked up a sharp knife, reached in and grabbed the ghost-faced shrimp he had just put in, looked at it for two seconds, then threw it on the ground and stepped on it.

  The gleaming knife reflected the moment it stabbed down, and the young man's face suddenly became indifferent.

  The blue polluted blood splashed open like yesterday, and splashed half of Shen Shi's body. In the surrounding sea breeze, a strong bloody smell spread out.

  The starfish retreated two steps with a look of disgust, watching Shen Shi squat down and insert the knife into the shrimp gap, then carefully start cutting the shell.

  A faint sound began to echo on the beach, that was the sharp blade and hard shrimp shell colliding and cutting incessantly. The hard shrimp shell and the curved and difficult shrimp seam were all desperately blocking the advance of Shen Shi's knife edge, just like yesterday's difficulty. Shen Shi silently stared at the big shrimp in his hand, which was constantly flowing with blue polluted blood, carefully doing his work.

  Next to him, a small white hand quietly handed him a bowl of shrimp meat, and then suddenly jumped far away like a startled rabbit.

  Shen Shi raised his head and looked at the sea star a few steps away, and smiled slightly.

  Looking at the boy's bright smile, for some reason, Haixing also felt that her mood was not bad. In the distance, the Red Clam Village had people moving about, they were all her clansmen from the same village. However, perhaps it was because they knew that peeling shrimp was a dirty job, so not one of the Red Clam villagers came over here. On the vast and white sandy beach, there were only Shen Shi and Haixing, two people.

  The sea breeze blows in gusts, the waves surge, the "chirping" sound of birds echoes in the vast and empty sky, the sea and sky are one color, with white clouds scattered about.

  "Hey," the starfish had somehow ended up lying on its own on the beach, with its hands under its head and staring at the sky, and just shouted out this one sentence.

  A few steps away, Shen Shi made a great effort and finally killed the first ghost-faced shrimp. He threw the white tender shrimp meat into the sea bowl, raised his head to look at her, and smiled: "What's wrong?"

  The starfish narrowed its eyes, gazing at the vast sky, and its voice seemed to carry a hint of longing and drifting, saying: "Shen Shi, I'm asking you, what was the place where you used to live like?"

  Shen Shi thought for a moment and said, "There are many mountains and little land there, it's often overcast, rarely see such clear skies like here. Oh, even the river water is hard to find there, let alone such a vast ocean."

  The starfish said with a flat mouth: "What's good about the sea? I've been seeing it since I was young, and I'm tired of looking at it."

  Shen Shi laughed and said, "No way, I think it's very beautiful here."

  The starfish suddenly turned over and sat up, looking at Shen Shi with a few serious expressions, saying: "Shen Shi, in the future I'll take you to see some really beautiful places in the sea, and if there's an opportunity, can you also take me to your hometown to have a look?"

  Shen Shi lost his smile and said, "How can my hometown compare to this paradise on earth?"

  The starfish pouted and muttered: "I've been here since I was a kid, and I haven't even left Qingyu Island. I really want to go out and take a look."

  Shen Shi was taken aback for a moment, as if he had just realized something. He took a closer look at Haixing and then nodded, saying: "Alright, I promise you, next time I have the chance, I'll take you there."

  The starfish suddenly became excited, clapped his hands and chuckled: "Great, it's settled then."

  Shen Shi laughed and shook his head, then bent down to pick up another ghost-faced shrimp, saying "You just said that the truly beautiful place in the sea is where?"

  The sea star pointed to the distant ocean and smiled, saying: "The seabed is beautiful, there's a place outside the island with coral and strange rocks everywhere, hundreds of thousands of small fish in five colors and six colors swimming around, it's extremely beautiful, I'll take you to see it when I come back."

  Shen Shi let out a soft "oh" and, with the large blue prawn still in hand, turned his head to gaze out at the distant sea surface. A hint of longing appeared on his face, but soon gave way to a somewhat disheartened shake of the head as he bitterly smiled and said, "I don't know how to swim, there's no way I can go."

  The starfish made a "cutting" sound, waved its hand with a disdainful expression, and smiled brightly, saying:

  "It's nothing much, I'll teach you."