Chapter 285

Chapter 285: Sect Master Nalan!

As the incense was lit, a wisp of blue smoke slowly rose, then disappeared into the void.

　　Ye Tianming waited quietly.

　　Suddenly.

　　A knock came from outside the door.

　　Ye Tianming got up and opened the door. Standing outside was a woman dressed in a simple plain cloth skirt with no pattern whatsoever — utterly unadorned. Her long hair draped over her shoulders, her features graceful and beautiful, and at her waist hung a jade-green pendant.

　　Ye Tianming looked at her with curiosity.

　　When the woman saw Ye Tianming, she too was briefly taken aback. She then glanced into the room, and upon noticing the stick of incense still not fully burned, her gaze returned to him. “Were you the one who lit the incense?”

　　Ye Tianming nodded.

　　A flicker of surprise crossed the woman’s eyes, but it quickly faded. She smiled and said, “Hello, my name is Muse. I’m a guide from the Theological Academy.”

　　Ye Tianming smiled back. “Hello, I’m Ye Tianming. I didn’t expect you to arrive so quickly.”

　　Muse smiled gently. “I didn’t expect you to be so young, sir.”

　　Ye Tianming laughed and asked, “Are the others usually much older?”

　　Muse shook her head. “This incense is called ‘Theological Incense.’ It is the highest-grade incense our Theological Academy possesses. You could say that unless someone has saved the Academy, we would never give away this incense.”

　　Ye Tianming nodded. “I see. This incense was a gift from my grand-master. He wanted me to come study at the Theological Academy.”

　　”Ah, that explains it!”

　　Muse smiled. “If it’s convenient for you, sir, we can set off right now.”

　　Ye Tianming nodded. “I need to bring someone along. Is that alright?”

　　Muse laughed. “Not just a friend — even if you wanted to bring the entire city with you, that would be no problem at all.”

　　Seeing that Muse didn’t seem to be joking, Ye Tianming was somewhat surprised.

　　It seemed he had underestimated just how valuable this stick of incense was.

　　But then again, that was only natural. Something gifted by a figure like his grand-master could hardly be ordinary.

　　Ye Tianming said, “Miss Muse, could we wait until dawn to depart?”

　　Muse nodded. “Of course.”

　　Ye Tianming said, “Thank you.”

　　Muse shook her head. “You’re too polite, sir.”

　　And so, when dawn arrived, Ye Tianming went to Zhantai Zhan’s room and found she had only just woken up.

　　He walked up to her, gently ruffled her hair, and smiled. “It’s time for us to go.”

　　Zhantai Zhan looked at him, blinked, then nodded.

　　Ye Tianming took her hand and led her outside. He looked toward Muse, who was waiting by the door. “Miss Muse, we’re ready to leave.”

　　Muse glanced at Zhantai Zhan and understood at once why the young man had wanted to wait for morning.

　　He had simply wanted to let her sleep a little longer.

　　Muse smiled. “Alright.”

　　As she spoke, she opened her palm, and a lotus flower appeared in her hand — no larger than a palm, crystalline and translucent, like carved glass, extraordinarily beautiful.

　　As Muse channeled her power, the lotus flower suddenly transformed into a beam of white light that enveloped all three of them, and in an instant, they found themselves passing through a stretch of flowing time.

　　Ye Tianming looked around with curiosity. “Time-space travel?”

　　Muse shook her head. “Not time-space travel — temporal travel.”

　　Ye Tianming looked at her, and Muse smiled as she explained, “This object is the Temporal Lotus, crafted by the Supreme Zen Master. It allows travel through time rather than space. If it were time-space travel, there would be no way to reach the Theological Academy from that previous universe.”

　　Ye Tianming gave a slight nod. “I see.”

　　Muse hesitated for a moment, then said, “Sir, do you have no cultivation at all?”

　　Ye Tianming glanced at her and nodded. “That’s right.”

　　Muse’s eyes were filled with astonishment. “But…”

　　Ye Tianming smiled and explained, “Due to certain circumstances, my cultivation was lost.”

　　”Ah, I see!”

　　Muse said, “What a shame. But once you reach the Theological Academy, there will surely be a way to restore your cultivation.”

　　Ye Tianming smiled but said nothing.

　　As for cultivation and realms — he could do without them.

　　After some time had passed, a expanse of white light appeared before the three of them.

　　Muse smiled. “Young Master Ye, we’ve arrived.”

　　Passing through the white light, they emerged above a vast sea. Looking out into the distance, mountains rose behind mountains, stretching endlessly to the horizon.

　　And at the very deepest point, one particular mountain was unlike any other — it hung suspended like an enormous inverted sword, and upon it stood row upon row of ancient, towering halls and palaces.

　　Muse smiled. “That is the Theological Academy. Young Master Ye, you are the sixteenth student enrolled this year.”

　　Ye Tianming said, “Does the Academy accept very few students each year?”

　　Muse nodded. “Very, very few. Over the past hundred years, we have accepted fewer than two hundred students in total. This year is actually considered a relatively large intake.”

　　Ye Tianming nodded. “That’s truly rigorous.”

　　Muse smiled. “Extremely rigorous. However, everyone who enters the Theological Academy is truly exceptional. The Academy tolerates no mediocrity.”

　　Ye Tianming smiled. “Then I’m rather curious to see what I’ll find.”

　　Led by Muse, they arrived at the summit of the inverted mountain. The moment he stepped onto the peak and looked back, the sight was breathtaking — all the other mountains lay far below, and the view stretched out without limit.

　　Ye Tianming smiled. “What a magnificent view.”

　　With that, he took Zhantai Zhan’s hand and walked toward the Academy buildings in the distance.

　　The Theological Palace of the Theological Academy was extraordinarily grand, rising a hundred zhang high, and carved along its outer walls were murals of all manner of exotic beasts.

　　As they made their way through, he also caught sight of some of the students — and he couldn’t help but be astonished, for even the most ordinary among them was at minimum at the Dao-Establishment realm.

　　Those students were also looking at him with curiosity.

　　Just then, an elderly man came out smiling to greet them. He was somewhat portly, dressed in a wide, flowing robe that made him look rather rotund, and the smile on his face bloomed as brilliantly as a chrysanthemum. Even from a distance, he called out, “You must be Young Master Ye? What a pleasure, what a pleasure!”

　　Ye Tianming: “……”

　　Muse smiled and said, “Young Master Ye, this is the Vice President of our Theological Academy. His name is Zhou Qing. The President is in long-term secluded cultivation, so all Academy affairs are currently managed by him.”

　　Ye Tianming gave a slight bow. “Vice President Zhou, it’s a pleasure to meet you.”

　　Zhou Qing reached out and caught his arm with a laugh. “No need for such formality — we’re all family here. Coming here is like coming home. Don’t be a stranger.”

　　Ye Tianming: “…….”

　　After chatting for a while, Zhou Qing suddenly said, “How is your grand-master keeping these days?”

　　Ye Tianming smiled. “He’s doing well.”

　　Zhou Qing nodded slowly and said softly, “It’s been a thousand years since we last parted. I truly do miss him.”

　　Ye Tianming said, “Senior……”

　　Zhou Qing cut him off immediately. “Don’t call me Senior — that’s too distant. Just call me Uncle Qing, like little Muse does.”

　　Ye Tianming hesitated for a moment, then said, “Uncle Qing.”

　　Zhou Qing broke into a wide smile. “You’ve just arrived, so feel free to take a few days to get familiar with the Academy. Three days from now, you’ll start as an instructor in the ‘Human Studies Palace.’ Teach whatever you’re best at.”

　　Ye Tianming was instantly stunned and hurried to say, “Uncle Qing, I came here as a student……”

　　Even Muse was somewhat taken aback — she hadn’t expected Zhou Qing to appoint Ye Tianming as an instructor outright.

　　Zhou Qing said seriously, “Having you come as a student would be a waste of your talents. Even making you an instructor in the ‘Earth Studies Palace’ would be beneath you — but the Academy has its rules and regulations. Putting you directly into the ‘Divine Studies Palace’ would be like placing you over a fire — it wouldn’t be good for you. So bear with it for now.”

　　Ye Tianming was about to say something else, but Zhou Qing laughed. “Now that you’re here, you’ll follow my arrangements.”

　　Ye Tianming felt helpless.

　　Zhou Qing called out, “Someone come.”

　　At that, an elderly man appeared in the courtyard.

　　Zhou Qing said, “Take Instructor Ye to his residence — that estate on the southern mountain. From this moment on, that will be Instructor Ye’s home. All his needs are to be provided at my own standard.”

　　The elderly man was somewhat surprised, but said nothing. He looked toward Ye Tianming. “Instructor Ye, please follow me.”

　　Ye Tianming nodded. “Thank you for the trouble.”

　　After watching Ye Tianming and Zhantai Zhan depart, Muse said, “Uncle Qing, you made him an instructor… does that carry some deeper meaning?”

　　Zhou Qing let out a quiet sigh. “Child, do you know what that Theological Token he carries actually signifies? There are things you know a little about, but not fully. Long ago, our Theological Academy faced an unprecedented crisis, and had it not been for that figure from the Cultivators’ Academy who stepped in, our Academy would have been reduced to ash and smoke.”

　　He sighed again. “In truth, when the Academy gave away that token back then, the thought was that such a person would surely never need to use it — someone of that stature? We simply had nothing worthy to offer, so we gave this……. But who could have imagined that a thousand years later, they actually used it.”

　　Then his voice grew animated. “This is a bond of gratitude passed down through generations! They sent their own successor’s disciple to our Academy — if we truly made him sit as a student, that would be terribly ungracious.”

　　Muse said in a low voice, “But as an instructor……”

　　Zhou Qing glanced at her and smiled. “Making him an instructor — that is our Theological Academy’s gesture of respect. Whether he can fill the role is his own affair. Do you understand?”

　　The realization dawned on Muse all at once.

　　Regardless of whether the person was capable or not, the Theological Academy had to make this gesture.

　　Zhou Qing added, “Besides, could a successor’s disciple of that figure ever be ordinary?”

　　Muse said, “But this Young Master Ye has no cultivation whatsoever……”

　　Zhou Qing smiled. “And that is precisely what makes him most terrifying.”

　　Muse immediately understood.

　　Zhou Qing then said, “Have you visited Guanxuan Academy yet?”

　　Muse nodded. “I have.”

　　Zhou Qing asked eagerly, “How did it go?”

　　Muse said in a low voice, “The young lord of the Guanxuan Domain is unwilling to join our Theological Academy.”

　　”What a pity!”

　　Zhou Qing sighed softly.

　　Muse shook her head. “I actually don’t feel that it’s such a great loss. He lost to Young Master Ye three times in a row……”

　　”You don’t understand!”

　　Zhou Qing said, “Defeat in itself is not frightening. What is frightening is failing to understand oneself after defeat. The reforms that young master Yang Jia later carried out within the Academy — especially that line ‘ending autocracy through autocracy’ — that reflects an extremely profound understanding of the Dao. I dare say that person’s future achievements will surpass even his father’s.”

　　It had to be said that what ‘Yang Jia’ had done within the Guanxuan Universe had shaken not only the entire True World and the Guanxuan World, but had sent ripples of astonishment through all the civilizations and powers beyond as well.

　　Muse suddenly said, “Uncle Qing, the three students of the Divine Arrival realm from within the Academy have all taken leave and returned home.”

　　Zhou Qing’s brow furrowed. “What’s happened?”

　　He had actually been in secluded cultivation for some time — had Ye Tianming not arrived, he would not have emerged at all.

　　Muse said, “There is something you may not be aware of: the Divine Arrival realm has been summoning forces from across the universe. They have already made a pact with the Yang family — in three months, they will fight a decisive battle on the Divine Path Battlefield.”

　　Zhou Qing was taken aback. “The second and third ranked powers on the universe influence rankings are going to go to war?”

　　Muse nodded. “They clashed once before, and the Divine Arrival realm lost. But they refused to accept it and want a rematch. This time, countless factions have begun choosing sides, and the two forces are evenly matched. After all, the Yang family’s side is formidable as well — those affiliated with their Academy and the Immortal Treasure Pavilion are numerous. And on the Divine Arrival realm’s side, the new divine figure possesses a divine mandate — once he ascends to godhood……. a whole new divine age will begin.”

　　She paused briefly, then continued, “I’ve also heard that the Divine Arrival realm has recruited terrifying outside reinforcements specifically to deal with that azure-fox woman who once suppressed the Circle Realm with a single hand……. This time, they intend to bury the Yang family completely.”

　　Zhou Qing asked, “And Guanxuan Academy’s side?”

　　Muse said in a low voice, “On Guanxuan Academy’s side, I’ve heard that some of the Yang family’s elder generation have already mobilized……. As for the Immortal Treasure Pavilion, Pavilion Master Nalan has personally appeared. I’ve heard this Pavilion Master Nalan has long been paving the way for Yang Jia, orchestrating his path to the Dao Rankings and to godhood……”