Beastmaster of the Ages

Ye Dongliu, seemingly a little worried, said, “The Xuanyuan Dragon Sect is in danger now. Either they resist the invasion and fight the celestial orderians, or they join them and antagonize the Myriad Solar Sects. There’s no benefit to befriending them now. If we let the Whitedragon Empress come, we’ll definitely only be inviting trouble!” He widened his eyes and turned to Gujian Qingshuang. “Chief Instructor, you have to think this over thrice!”

“Dongliu, I think your opinions are a little too extreme. The Xuanyuan Dragon Sect leaders aren’t weaklings. They only had their dragonsprings taken away because the enemy took hostages. It’s only a temporary setback, not a complete loss. Not to mention, the Myriad Solar Sects won’t just silently take this. If we can’t even properly host our guests, we would be made a laughingstock by the Xuanyuan Dragon Sect. Not to mention, we can never be so harsh and heartless when it comes to diplomacy, especially not toward the Xuanyuan Dragon Sect, who have stood with us since the start of the Voidsky Skirmish,” Granny Mu Hua said at a leisurely pace.

“Your so-called ‘standing together’ is just a ruse for wanting to keep those disciples,” Ye Dongliu mocked.

“It’s called repaying favors. Not to mention, we won’t even be able to keep them as disciples.” Mu Hua turned to Gujian Qingshuang and said, “What are your thoughts on this, Chief Instructor?”

While the two of them were both senior in terms of age, Gujian Qingshuang had the final say and would similarly be held accountable for his choice. He pursed his lips and said, “So far, there’s been no word from the Sky Palace. However, the Myriad Solar Sects have come to a consensus to not aid the Xuanyuan Dragon Sect. Granny Mu Hua is still right that the Xuanyuan Dragon Sect is the historical leader of the Myriad Solar Sects, so we can’t just brush them off like that. This isn’t a black and white matter that can be simply brushed away like that.”

Ye Dongliu wasn’t happy with this response. “You think I’m too extreme? Fine. You’d better be ready for the consequences.” By now, they could see Jiang Qingliu’s qilin appearing on the horizon. He humphed and left without saying a word, unwilling to be part of the welcome party.

“That old geezer’s temper is still as fiery as ever,” Granny Mu Hua said.

“Uncle Ye is just doing this with the sect’s best interest in mind. It’s a complicated situation. It’s one thing for the disciples to perform well in the Voidsky Skirmish. However, the Azurecloud Divine Tree is going to bear fruit soon, and the Supracloud Sanctuary has the Blueblood Starocean and wargodeans helping them. The Azuresoul Palace is wrapped up in this whole mess, yet if we don’t go out to fight for the harvest, we won’t be able to catch up when it comes to resources in the next ten thousand years!”

With the help of the Xuanyuan Dragon Sect, they wouldn’t have had to fear the Blueblood Starocean and wargodeans. But now, things were different.

“Whatever. Let’s see what these Sky Palace disciples are made of first!”

……

As they entered the continent, Tianming was greeted by two grand sights. The first was the Azurecloud Divine Tree that covered much of the sun, and the second was the Azurecloud Sword Mountain, a sword-shaped mountain that pierced straight through the clouds above.

Ying Huo said, “Doesn’t it look kind of like the sun’s dick?”

Jiang Qingliu and Yu Ziqian didn’t know how to respond to that, though Tianming had to admit that it was a rather apt description.

“Are the membranes that stretch across the mountain part of the Azuresky Myriadsword Formation?” Tianming asked. He could see it more and more clearly the closer he got. There were many strands of sword ki thousands of meters in length surrounding the mountain. Even from afar, the sounds generated from them rapidly moving about grated uncomfortably against his ears.

According to Yu Ziqian, this was a grade-seven formation and one of the two strongest defensive formations on the continent. It protected the core of the entire sect, but the Xuanyuan Dragon Sect had lost control of theirs to an enemy. It was no different from allowing the enemy to come and go as they pleased after slaughtering those within.

“What else? Did you think it was a condom?” Yu Ziqian said, rolling his eyes.

“What’s that for?” Tianming asked.

“You don’t even know that? You’re far too innocent. It’s… well… something used during sexy time to prevent babies from being made,” Yu Ziqian naughtily said.

“Damn….” Tianming and Ying Huo were both shocked. As expected of higher life forms from the sun. They really knew their stuff when it came to this.

Tianming said, “Get me some next time, will you?” In his lifebound space, Feiling’s flower suddenly turned stiff and its petals flushed red. What followed was an awkward silence. Fortunately, they were about to arrive at their destination.

Whether they would stop Tianming and the rest from entering would soon be revealed. It turned out that the formation opened up and let them pass. They reached the Celestial Welcome Hall without any trouble. There were quite a lot of people waiting for them there.

The azuresky qilin had finally reached its home. After dropping off Tianming and the rest, it disappeared into the nearby rivers and hills, where all the other beasts were.

Jiang Qingliu and Long Wanying brought the juniors to the swordpupils. Most of them were grade three and above, and all of them held important positions in the sect. They were all solarians.

“I, Gujian Qingshuang, wish the Whitedragon Empress a warm welcome to our humble abode on behalf of the Azuresoul Palace.” Gujian Qingshuang smiled as he saluted her. In terms of status, hers was above his, but he was still the chief instructor of the sect so he couldn’t appear too humble in his own turf. But it would be a different story if this was the Saintdragon Emperor. At the very least, Gujian Qingshuang would have to bow if that were the case.

“You’re too polite, Chief Instructor. I’m the one who’s bringing you trouble. As a result of recent changes at the Xuanyuan Dragon Sect, as well as how much we treasure these four disciples, the Saintdragon Emperor has instructed that I protect them. I’ll only bring them back to the sect after the situation there has stabilized. Please accept my sincerest apologies for the trouble this will cause,” she said gently. Her beauty and polite tone immediately caught the eye of many of the swordpupils, practically sweeping away most of the hostility they had previously held. Beauty had its uses too.

Tianming had thought this would be a tense situation, though it turned out to be rather pleasant overall. The people there were all of some import, so they wouldn’t lose their temper like a child now that the decision had been made.

“These disciples must be honored to be favored by the Xuanyuan Dragon Sect. It’s also our honor as well, so there’s no trouble regarding this matter. Please rest assured that we’ll do our best to cooperate regarding matters of these disciples,” Gujian Qingshuang said.