Marry the Demon Sect Girl with No Bride Price-Chapter 291 - 96: Why Must I, Xia Qinglian, Ascend?

Chapter 291: Chapter 96: Why Must I, Xia Qinglian, Ascend?

Ye Xiyue was silent for a moment, glanced at Yun Chen, and said lightly, "I’m afraid your Cloud Bamboo Mountain doesn’t have much time left."

She was referring to the army of Spirit Corpse Mountain.

Ye Xiyue followed from afar behind Qin Gengyun and others all the way, while behind her was the large contingent of Spirit Corpse Mountain.

The formation was formidable, with at least two thousand spirit corpses. Furthermore, Ye Xiyue sensed several currents of Golden Core Realm spiritual power.

If she hadn’t been injured, she would naturally have not cared, but now she only had the cultivation of Foundation Establishment, and naturally wanted to avoid conflict with them.

Alerting Yun Chen was out of concern that before finding a way to enter the back mountain, Spirit Corpse Mountain would already attack, which would cause further complications.

Yun Chen smiled and said, "Thank you, Fairy Ye, for the reminder. It’s true that Cloud Bamboo Mountain’s disaster is imminent, but tonight it can still make it through."

Niantang’s expression was slightly tense: "Spirit Corpse Mountain has come?"

Speaking of Spirit Corpse Mountain, she suddenly thought of the tragic scene in that wooden house on Cloud Pattern Mountain.

Xiaoque’er, Xiaoxuan... so many lovely, simple children, those small bodies lying in pools of blood, no longer holding their innocent, radiant smiles.

She had promised Xiaoque’er to visit her in the future and play with her, and Xiaoque’er would give her candies again.

This promise could never be fulfilled.

Suddenly, killing intent filled the air.

Yun Chen seemed to sense Niantang’s emotions, and he deeply cupped his hands in a bow:

"Fairy and your husband are both kind-hearted people. On behalf of Yun Hua and Yun Li, I thank you."

Beside them, Ye Xiyue sneered. It was the first time she heard someone call Xia Qinglian a kind person.

Niantang frowned: "Mountain Master Yun, there’s no need to coerce me with words. Even if one day I go to Spirit Corpse Mountain to settle debts, it won’t be for the sake of Cloud Pattern Mountain’s revenge, but rather for Xiaoque’er."

Yun Chen smiled and nodded: "I understand. Fairy’s conduct and heart are beyond comparison. I am grateful!"

Niantang frowned more deeply, always feeling that while Yun Chen appeared amiable, his calculations ran deep, as if he wanted to drag her and Qin Gengyun into a trap.

As expected, Yun Chen laughed heartily: "Fairy Xiyue, Thunder Sword Fairy, and Fairy Qinglian, the three great modern-day immortals have gathered at Cloud Bamboo Mountain. It’s my honor. As a gesture of gratitude, I will first present two small gifts to you both."

Before the two could speak, Yun Chen had already said to Ye Xiyue:

"Fairy Ye, you are wholeheartedly devoted to the Dao, with no concern for worldly affairs. If you follow the footsteps of the Zhenyang Sect elders, you will surely be the first to ascend in five centuries."

"But now, the phoenix encounters the shallows, and the road ahead is obscure. It’s merely because you’re too focused on yourself, unable to experience worldly matters."

"Why not immerse yourself in the world and events? Perhaps amidst the mundane, you may see the great Dao."

With each sentence Yun Chen spoke, Ye Xiyue’s expression turned colder; by the end, she was already bowing her head in deep thought, then said to Yun Chen:

"Thank you."

It turned out Yun Chen was actually divining her Dao luck, peering into the heavenly secrets, and with every word he precisely pointed out her vulnerabilities, making this gift invaluable, even prompting Ye Xiyue to express her thanks.

Yet, the notion of "enter the world and events, see the Dao within the mundane" was not the path Ye Xiyue pursued. She had some doubts in her heart and intended to retreat into secluded cultivation to ponder the way forward once the Demon Embryo was resolved.

Then Yun Chen turned to Niantang: "Fairy Qinglian, born with extraordinary talent, if solely committed to the Dao, could ascend within a few years. What a pity..."

He glanced down at the ground, eyes sweeping toward Qin Gengyun, and continued:

"For a cultivator, having distractions in the heart makes it difficult to progress. I wonder what Fairy Qinglian thinks?"

Niantang sneered: "Why must I ascend?"

Yun Chen asked: "No cultivator is not for attaining ascension. With such a gift, Fairy Qinglian, why not aspire to it?"

Niantang retorted: "Mountain Master Yun, once ascended, where do you go? Are those you meet truly immortal, flawless beings?"

Yun Chen pondered: "The tales of what is seen and heard after ascension can only be found recorded in the Immortal Flying Pavilion. I truly do not know."

Niantang said coldly: "Since people don’t know what fate awaits after ascension, why be obsessed with attaining Dao and ascending? What if, after painstakingly achieving Dao, ascending to the Upper Realm results in encountering blood and gore, a demonic cave?" 𝒇𝒓𝒆𝒆𝙬𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝒎

Ye Xiyue rebuked: "Xia Qinglian, choose your words carefully!"

For several thousand years, the ultimate pursuit of countless cultivators has been nothing but attaining Dao and ascending.

Yet only a few have managed to do it, leaving their divine traces to be extolled by generations.

It is imaginable that after ascending to the Upper Realm, they must join the ranks of immortals, shine with the sun and moon, a realm that everyone dreams about.

Ye Xiyue was the same.

Her wholehearted pursuit of the Dao was for ascension to immortality, to gaze down upon all living beings.

Unexpectedly, Xia Qinglian uttered such audacious, rebellious words. If heard by cultivators worldwide, they would surely join forces against her.

"Xia Qinglian, indeed you are a witch!"

Niantang calmly replied: "Who said cultivation must lead to ascension? Staying in the world to protect those I wish to protect, and matters I wish to uphold, isn’t that cultivation too? You sever emotions and righteousness and deem others as an aberration to execute. I say you are the evil way!"

Ye Xiyue’s face turned colder, unable to restrain herself from making a move.

This wasn’t about sectarian enmity but a massive division in belief, a situation where one must kill the other to affirm one’s Tao Heart.

Yun Chen suddenly burst out laughing: "Fairy Qinglian, as the most talented of Cyan Lotus Sect after Sheng Tanglian, indeed stands out!"

Upon hearing the name of the ancestor Sheng Tanglian, Niantang couldn’t help but look at Yun Chen, only to hear him say with a smile:

"The last words I have for Fairy Qinglian are: You can confidently tread the path of Sheng Tanglian, just choose the right person, and all you wish for in your heart can be realized."

Niantang was taken aback. She couldn’t help glancing at the ground; Qin Gengyun was holding the Heaven-Reaching Staff with a tense expression.

She couldn’t help her lips curling slightly, her voice unusually gentle: "I have chosen the right person."

Then she added: "I walk my own path, unrelated to those before me."

Yun Chen smiled and said: "Fairy Qinglian’s resolve is firm, it seems I’ve spoken too much, I admire it!"

Niantang cupped her hands and said: "Thank you, Mountain Master Yun."

Yun Chen took two bone chains from his bosom: "This is the second gift."

He then handed the two bone chains respectively to Niantang and Ye Xiyue.

Ye Xiyue’s willowy brows furrowed: "What is this?"

Yun Chen smiled and said: "On Cloud Bamboo Mountain, there’s a hidden space. If Spirit Corpse Mountain attacks, I will hide Yun Xing, Yun Yan, Yun Yu, and these children there. The hidden space also contains all of Cloud Bamboo Mountain’s treasures and cultivation techniques, including my profound cultivation methods."

"These two bone chains are the Spirit Keys to open the space. If Cloud Bamboo Mountain meets disaster, I ask the two fairies to take all Cloud Bamboo Mountain’s relics, and incidentally..."

He paused, his face still smiling, but eyes holding grief:

"Take these children away. How to settle them, I leave to your discretion."

Ye Xiyue coldly said: "After saying so much, you just want us to preserve Cloud Bamboo Mountain’s bloodline for you? Quite the calculation."

Niantang said nothing, yet had already accepted the bone chain.

Ye Xiyue hesitated, cast a cold glance at Niantang, and finally also accepted the bone chain.

Yun Chen was overjoyed, bowed deeply: "Thank you, two fairies."

Then he looked at the crowd below, his voice resonant and clear:

"Tonight at the Cloud Bamboo Dance Festival, this old man awaits all of your esteemed presences!"