Chapter One: Heaven's First Floor

  Bai Xian Rock slowly rose into the air amidst a dazzling golden light and solemn chanting, with people on the rock rejoicing and those still on the ground looking up in awe and reverence, their admiration for Ling Xiao Sect growing even deeper. As the massive boulder continued to rise, it suddenly stopped for a moment when it was over thirty feet above the ground, then the golden light surged violently, accelerating instantly, and this enormous object shot towards the depths of the ocean like a flying arrow.

  On the giant rock, as Bai Xian Rock flew swiftly and steadily in mid-air, many Ling Xiao Sect disciples within the light circles seemed to have completed their tasks, one by one putting down their hands and walking out of the light circle formation, chatting quietly in twos and threes. Only Wang Heng, standing at the front of the largest light circle, remained motionless, maintaining his spellcasting posture, as if grasping the direction of this giant rock's unbelievable flight.

  Behind Wang, Gan Wenqing glanced at Kang Zhen standing beside him and said: "Kang Shidi, I've been down the mountain for several days and just learned from Wang Shixiong that Du Shixiong had an accident. How is he now?"

  Kang Zhen's young and handsome face flashed a hint of helplessness, but it was clear that he still had some respect for Gan Wenqing. Their relationship must have been quite good on ordinary days, as they spoke and acted with a certain familiarity and ease. He shook his head slightly and sighed, "Sister, you also know my brother's temper. He's not young anymore, but he's still like a firecracker - one spark and he's off. That day, Elder Sun only said two sentences to him, and he lost control and started a scene, without even thinking that Elder Sun is his elder... Alas, this time he really made our master angry, and now he's been locked in the Black Cloud Cave for reflection."

  Gan Wenqing furrowed her brow, pulled him a few steps away and said in a low voice: "You and Du Shixiong are both under the same master, why don't you plead for leniency on his behalf to your master? Master Zhangsun is highly respected within the sect, if he intervenes, there might be room for compromise."

  Kang Zhen shrugged and said, "It's precisely because my master is the leader that it's hard to speak." As he spoke, his eyebrows suddenly rose as if he had thought of something. He turned to look at Gan Wenqing with a smile and said, "So, Master Sister, you still have some concern for my Master Brother after all. This is great! I'll find an opportunity to pass this on to him, and it will surely make him overjoyed."

  Gan Wen Qing snorted: "What nonsense are you spouting, at such a young age and still not studying properly, now you even dare to flirt with your senior sister?"

  Kang Zhen immediately shrunk his head and begged for mercy: "I don't dare, I don't dare, Sister Master spare my life. Otherwise, even if you don't settle accounts with me, Brother Du will know you're angry and will probably come over to skin me alive."

  Gan Wenqing said with a bad tone: "Not serious, I just looked at the past relationship with Du Shixiong and it's not good, also as the same generation of new disciples, so I care about asking a few questions. That Black Cloud Cave has extremely strong yin energy, which is very harmful to our sect's Daoist cultivation. If you stay inside for too long, I'm afraid it will be detrimental to your Dao heart."

  Kang Zhen sighed and stopped joking, saying: "Who says it's not? But now Master Du has made a big mistake, even Master Shifu is angry, the most important thing is that he dared to scold even the master of our sect, and what he said was very unpleasant, directly saying that the old ancestor taught disciples without method, at such an old age, teaching out Sun Zhanglao, this kind of old man with unclear vision, it can be seen that he is also confused..."

  Gan Wenqing was shocked for the first time to hear that the bold and reckless Du Shixiong had said such rebellious words, and for a moment she was speechless, her face filled with worry, shaking her head repeatedly. After a while, Gan Wenqing looked up to see Kang Zhen standing beside her, his face pleading as he looked at her, wanting to speak but hesitating, lingering and not willing to leave, looking entangled. She was an intelligent and clever woman who understood the complexities within the household, and with just a thought, she suddenly realized what was on this young man's mind, humming a sound, saying: "What do you want to say?"

  Kang Zhen took one look at the beautiful Shifu's face and knew that she had already thought of something, but was pretending to be confused and not saying anything. Immediately, a few hints of flirtation appeared on his face, and although he was smiling apologetically at Gan Wenqing, he still exuded an extraordinary air of elegance and refinement, making him even more handsome than Wang Hang standing beside him. Adding to that his youth and suave demeanor, it wasn't long before many of the new female disciples couldn't help but sneak glances at him, their eyes filled with admiration.

  Kang Zhen couldn't care about the gazes of those young girls anymore, at this moment his eyes only had the beautiful senior sister in front of him, smiling awkwardly: "Senior sister, good senior sister, please help my senior brother."

  Gan Wenqing let out a burst of laughter, her eyes darting towards the sky for an instant before she said with a smile: "That Du Shixiong of yours has quite the guts to even scold our ancestors, such presence, no one on Jin Hong Mountain can match him, what's there for me to save?"

  "Master, your words are wrong," said Kang Zhen. "My brother Du is a pig-headed fool, with no filter on his mouth, and he's not even worthy of comparison to you. He's like a muddy pit compared to the beautiful jade of the nine heavens. The difference between them can't be measured in li. Please, Master, have mercy and save him this once."

  Gan Wenqing smiled and said: "You stinky kid, did you know that your brother Du is in the Black Cloud Cave?"

  Kang Zhen's expression turned stern, saying: "Even if Du Shixiong is here, I would still speak my mind." After finishing speaking, his facial expression changed instantly, and he became flattering again, saying: "Sister, good sister, please go back and ask Yun Nian Shu to put in a good word for me. You also know that among the several elders in the sect, Sun Lao is strict with punishment, but has always had a soft spot for your master Yun Nian Shu..."

  Gan Wenqing glared at him, and Kang Chen hastily shut his mouth, standing there carefully with a pitiful expression, shrinking his head. This action again attracted the worried and concerned gazes of many girls around who were boarding the ship. Gan Wenqing hummed, hesitated for a moment, and finally said in an ill-tempered tone: "Alright, stop putting on that pitiful face. I'll go back to the mountain and ask my master, but whether she will agree to intervene or not, I can't guarantee."

  Kang Zhen was overjoyed and burst out laughing, saying: "Thank you so much, Master Sister! With Yun Nian Master Aunt taking action, what can't be settled in Ling Xiao Sect? When Du Master Brother is released later, I will definitely follow him to Cloud Nian Master Aunt's cave mansion to thank her."

  Gan Wen's eyes cleared as she gave him a glance, too lazy to bother with this guy who only wanted to rescue his senior brother. Her gaze was like autumn waves, turning and scanning the crowd of new disciples on the other side, but her heart was actually preoccupied with a figure of a slender man with an air of unruliness and recklessness, and for a moment she fell silent.

  Just now, dozens of golden Dharma wheels lit up on the top of the Xianyan Rock, with a magnificent momentum, which shocked and amazed many young people on the giant rock. Later, it was even more unbelievable to ordinary people's eyes that they flew straight into the sky across the vast ocean, making these twelve or three young people dizzy and fascinated by the magical powers of the immortal family.

  At this moment, although the light circle arrays serve as a boundary, there is an invisible force wall that blocks the surroundings of the giant rock, preventing these young people from getting too close to the edge of the giant stone, lest they fall off and get into danger. However, such a magical fairy family instrument appears right in front of their eyes, and the vast majority of young people cannot help but be curious, and they all come forward to take a closer look. The crowd rushes to the middle, and it is actually the three small circles that were previously vaguely separated that are disrupted.

  Shen Shi stood among the crowd, also intimidated by the mysterious methods of Ling Xiao Sect. At this moment, looking at the giant rock flying quickly through the air, he only had one thought left in his mind, which was "Ling Xiao Sect is indeed worthy of being a renowned sect under heaven".

  This method, this style, where is it comparable to the small schools of the mysterious yin gate on the other side of the Yin state?

  Just as Shen Shi was marveling, he suddenly felt someone patting him on the shoulder. Turning his head, he saw that Sun You had somehow returned and was smiling at him. Shen Shi smiled and said, "How did you come back again?"

  Sun You shrugged and said, "Those are all old acquaintances over there, just a greeting will do, actually there's nothing much to say."

  Shen Shi smiled slightly, but in his heart, he was recalling the appearance of Sun You earlier in the center of the crowd, which gave him a familiar and intimate feeling, as if they had known each other for a long time. However, he couldn't understand why Sun You would appear so careless and casual in front of him.

  At this moment, several people walked by in front of them, and the first few were those young masters from the noble families. One of them was Shen Shi who had some impression, exactly that Hou Yuangliang from the main line of the Hou family. Shen Shi's heart moved slightly, his eyes turned to look at the back of Hou Yuangliang, and indeed saw the little fatty Hou Sheng following closely behind him three or four steps away.

  At this moment, Hou Sheng seemed to have also noticed Shen Shi standing there, and he glanced at him with a sudden change in expression, his face sinking as he glared at him fiercely, clenching one fist and waving it at Shen Shi in a threatening manner, looking like he was waiting for an opportunity to teach him a lesson. However, after a moment, Hou Sheng seemed to have been distracted by something, and after saying a few words to Hou Yuanliang and another young master from a wealthy family standing nearby, he called out: "Xiao Sheng."

  Hou Sheng immediately responded with a sound, his face instantly filled with smiles, and he ran over in a flash.

  Shen Shi could only roll his eyes at the demonstration of Hou Sheng's power, and didn't say much. However, this scene happened to be seen by Sun You who was standing next to him, and he said in surprise: "Huh, isn't this kid... that one, I think he was a child servant of the Hou family before, always following Hou Yuanliang since childhood, uh, what's his name?"

  Shen Shi looked at him and said, "Is it Hou Sheng?"

  Sun Youyi clapped his hands and said, "That's right, that's the name. The young masters of aristocratic families have too many servants around them, and sometimes it's really hard to remember. Speaking of which, why do you, a person from Yinzhou, seem to be at odds with Hou Sheng?"

  Shen Shi let out a bitter laugh and after a moment of contemplation, still roughly explained the situation, naturally omitting some key points including the small jar.

  Sun You listened and then curled his lip, revealing a hint of disdain, saying: "Oh, that old man of his I've actually heard of before, notorious for being greedy and stingy. Relying on his somewhat shady connection with the Hou family, he's been cheating people at the South Heaven Gate more than once or twice. Who would have thought he'd use this trick on you too?" After speaking, he lightly waved his hand at Shen Shi, saying: "Later I'll find him and settle the score with him, and naturally he won't dare to come looking for trouble with you again."

  Shen Shi looked at his new friend with a few more glances, sizing up Sun You from head to toe, and laughed: "I wouldn't have guessed, you seem to be quite influential in their circle."

  Just as Sun You was about to say something with a smile, the two young men simultaneously heard someone snicker beside them. A pleasant and soft voice that was very nice to hear came from the side, but it carried a hint of sarcasm, saying:

  "You say others rely on their family background, but aren't you also relying on having a good surname? All you know how to do is talk nicely, but in the end, you're just someone who was born into a good family. Don't forget that there's still an older brother above you."

  Sun You's face turned black in an instant, his eyes gleaming like a knife as he stared coldly at the girl who was talking beside him.