Aspiring to the Immortal Path
chapter-458-30041322

The large hand reaching out stirred up stones and dust, but came away with nothing.

"Eh?" Surprised gasps came from the mouths of Ming Yekong and Xu Guanghua, and their faces were filled with disbelief.

There was nothing in the cave!

That beam of light surging into the air had already dissipated, but bizarrely, they hadn't even seen how it had disappeared. It was as if it had never existed.

They felt like they were missing a part of their memories, skipping some important chapter in their life. Everyone was somewhat uncomfortable with this feeling and looked around in confusion.

Ming Yekong's expression turned solemn, his eyes instantly glancing over at the summit.

With his strength, he could immediately tell that there was nothing in the cave. After some thought, he understood. "The Divine Time Crystal… To think they were able to use that time treasure."

Xu Guanghua's water manifestation froze for a moment, even the waters ceasing to flow, and then he began to laugh. "Well, isn't that wonderful? That thief managed to get away."

From his point of view, he didn't necessarily want the Beast Refining Gate to get this treasure, but he had no choice but to help for the sake of their relationship. The treasure being lost, with neither side profiting, was good news for the Horizon Ocean Pavilion, and so he didn't have the slightest inclination to chase the thief.

He asked, "Now that the treasure has been lost and the thief has fled, does Brother Ming plan to continue fighting?"

Ming Yekong shook his head. "Sea Lord, please forgive me for the earlier offense. Since this matter is concluded, I must return. However, there are still a few incompetent children of my Basking Moon Sect here. I hope that Horizon Ocean Pavilion will look after them."

Xu Guanghua glanced at Tang Jie and laughed. "He truly is an audacious child. Not even in a thousand years would you find someone at Mortal Shedding who would attack a True Lord."

Ming Yekong chuckled. "I've gotten used to it. Back at the Immortal Fortune Conference, he even cursed out Horizon Ocean Pavilion. As he's gotten stronger, so has his daring. But I rather like this child, so I would ask that Horizon Ocean Pavilion not make any trouble for him."

Xu Guanghua looked at his daughter, who had buried her head in Tang Jie's chest and refused to look at him. He knew that she was angry, and his heart softened as he sighed, "How could I make trouble for such a heroic youth?"

These words meant that he had agreed to allow Tang Jie and the others to freely return.

Feng Buzhi anxiously cried out, "Sea Lord!"

Xu Guanghua looked at Feng Buzhi and coolly said, "The matter is concluded, so shouldn't you hurry back and report? What is your reason for staying here?"

He sent out a watery sleeve, which wrapped around Feng Buzhi and the Beast Refining Gate disciples and sent them off into the distance.

Ming Yekong wasn't interested in pursuing them. He placed his hands together and bowed to Xu Guanghua before slowly disappearing.

Xu Guanghua looked at his daughter and sternly said, "Do I have to bring you back, or are you coming back yourself?"

Xu Miaoran twisted her body, knowing that now wasn't the time to be stubborn. She put an arm around Tang Jie's neck and said, "I'll be going first. Don't forget me."

This was a shocking act, and only Xu Miaoran dared to do such a thing. But Tang Jie liked Xu Miaoran this way, and he looked at her and gave a light nod.

This simple action combined with Tang Jie's affectionate gaze brimmed with feeling that left Xu Miaoran intoxicated.

Xu Guanghua could finally watch no longer, barking, "Miao'er!"

Only then did Xu Miaoran let go.

Xu Guanghua extended an arm made of water, raising up his daughter and moving away.

As Tang Jie watched Xu Miaoran disappear into the distance, he became saddened. It felt like someone had dug out his heart, cut out his liver. It was an indescribable pain and sorrow.

This feeling was intensified because he was losing Xu Miaoran shortly after losing the little tiger. His heart was so stuffed up that he couldn't speak, and the only way he could express himself was through tears.

Tang Jie didn't want things to be this way, so he took in a deep breath, putting all of his unwillingness and longing into a single breath, and throwing his head back in a howl to the heavens.

"AAAAAAGH!"

As he roared, countless pillars of water shot out from the ocean, rising toward the heavens like furious waves, resonating with his unwillingness and venting his rage.

Su Xinyue was rather startled by this roar. "His energy is substantialized to the point where he can make his surroundings quake. I didn't realize that Tang Jie had already cultivated to this level."

Spiritual energy substantialization was an ability that every Nine Revolutions cultivator was capable of, but the level of substantialization depended on the person. Tang Jie had exhibited the very highest level of substantialization, so it was no wonder that Su Xinyue had praised him.

The roaring went on for some time as Tang Jie used this furious bellow to vent all of the emotions weighing on his heart.

At this moment, a roar came from the distance.

Yiyi was startled by the sound. "Big Dummy!"

The figure of Shi Jingzhai appeared in the distance.

When this imbecile had entered the hidden realm, the special environment of the hidden realm had caused him to be separated from Yiyi. His imbecility meant that he didn't know that he needed to meet up with everyone on the island. Instead, he had wandered about the ocean, having a grand old time.

Now that the hidden realm had been broken and space was no longer disordered, he was able to follow Tang Jie's roar and find them.

Upon seeing Shi Jingzhai, Yiyi excitedly rushed over.

Even Tang Jie was taken aback. He didn't expect that his hollering would manage to call this guy out. Smirking, he said, "This guy was really useless."

He had initially taken in Shi Jingzhai because he felt like this was still a Celestial Heart True Person, so it was fine to keep him around as a dog to bite others.

He hadn't expected this guy's idiocy to make him so hard to use. Always, at critical moments, he was nowhere to be found. Tang Jie really couldn't take it any more, and he considered refining him into a ghost guard.

But what if the Heptademon Ghost Guard refined from this idiot would also be an idiot?

After considering how costly it was to refine a ghost guard, Tang Jie decided to give up on the idea.

Shi Jingzhai didn't know that he had just brushed shoulders with death, only laughing happily when he saw Yiyi. In the last two years they had spent together, they had grown rather affectionate.

Shi Jingzhai's appearance dispelled much of Tang Jie's sorrow.

He looked at Su Xinyue and the others and said, "My apologies. I lost control and made a fool of myself in front of all of you."

A Basking Moon Sect disciple said, "Senior Brother, the sincerity of your emotions only draws my admiration. If True Lord Xu knows of this, he might even be moved by your feelings and be willing to let you marry his daughter."

Tang Jie coolly replied, "What moves him isn't sincere emotions, but cultivation realm. One day, I will step through the gates of Horizon Ocean Pavilion and have Xu Guanghua… allow me the honor of marrying his daughter."

The bold ambition in these words awed everyone.

Who did he think he was, to have a True Lord bestow such an honor on him? His tone was just a little too much.

But considering how Tang Jie had dared to insult Heng Wudi and attack a True Lord, perhaps this tone wasn't too much at all.

Tang Jie turned to Wei Tianchong and asked, "Right, how did you manage to summon Master Ming?"

Wei Tianchong chuckled. "A few days ago, when your report on the Beast Garden arrived, the sect practically exploded. At the time, Master Ming had just emerged from his successful attempt at Violet Palace, becoming my Basking Moon Sect's fifth Violet Palace True Lord. Sect Master Ling Xiao immediately decided to have Master Ming take action and impress the world with his might. But True Lords cannot casually enter the territory of another sect, so it was decided that he should leave a mental trace on a disciple to serve as a marker to summon him. This was a great honor that would also be of great benefit to that fortunate disciple, and many people in the sect wanted it. As you had also happened to kill more than a hundred Beast Refining Gate disciples, my master immediately suggested that the opportunity be given to me."

In the end, it seemed like this guy owed his fortune to Tang Jie. Tang Jie had rendered such a great achievement, so he had to be rewarded, and Wei Tianchong happened to share in the limelight and get the power to summon Ming Yekong.

It had to be understood that while this sounded simple, it required the other party to leave a mental trace, and this mental trace would contain a part of their mind so that they could be summoned. In many cases, this part of their mind would contain a great deal of cultivation experience, and once it was comprehended, it would be a huge boon.

And Wei Tianchong had learned the Bright Heart, increasing his ability to comprehend. Although he was still somewhat of a moron when it came to the ways of the world, he was very sharp when it came to cultivation. Thus, he was able to smoothly comprehend the experiences in this mental trace.

In contrast, Feng Buzhi hadn't gotten anything. Rather than a mental trace, he had used a spell art.

Tang Jie asked, "Then when you're in danger in the future, can you still summon Master Ming?"

"Unfortunately not," Wei Tianchong replied.

In truth, once the mental trace was planted, unless Ming Yekong wiped it away, he would perpetually be able to sense Wei Tianchong's summons.

But sensing was one thing, and responding was another.

If it was a sect matter, Ming Yekong would naturally answer the call. But if Wei Tianchong dared to use it for every random matter, Ming Yekong would basically ignore him. Even if he came, he would probably be coming to take Wei Tianchong's head as punishment. So this was effectively the only time it could be used.

Wei Tianchong said, "After comprehending that mental trace, I feel like my path to cultivation has opened up by a lot. Tang Jie, you've rendered such a great achievement this time, you might request the sect master to reward you with a mental trace. If you can get the Sword of the Sect's mental trace, you could consider it a powerful protective talisman. And with your aptitude, once you comprehend it, you are certain to soar in power."

Tang Jie shook his head. "While mental traces are nice, there's a problem. A brand that's too deep is difficult to alter. These experiences are ultimately the experiences of someone else. They are excellent when used as a reference, but they aren't suitable for copying. While they allow for a rapid boost in the short term, they aren't favorable in the long term."

"There was something like that?" Wei Tianchong was aghast. "Then why did Master want the mental trace for me?"

Tang Jie rolled his eyes. "Idiot, you're still far from having to consider this problem. With your aptitude, there's really no need to think that far. It's more realistic to seize the advantages in front of you."

He flew into the air. With the matter concluded, it was time to return to the Basking Moon Sect.

Wei Tianchong froze, and then he chased after Tang Jie and shouted, "What do you mean, 'my aptitude'? What are you trying to say? Tell it to me straight…"

Everyone laughed and flew up in pursuit of Tang Jie.