Returning from the Immortal World

Tang Xiu’s words weren’t without basis. As there was an abundance of resources in the Immortal World, a good number of the children borne by major experts belonging to the sects were nourished with elixirs before their birth. Some of these children possessed elite bloodlines that granted them strength equal to Golden Core and Nascent Core cultivators the moment they were born. In the case of the Primordial Spirit Beasts and the Ancient Immortal Beasts, on account of their powerful bloodlines, the progeny birthed by them similarly possessed the might of ordinary Immortals.

Give your child a head start.

This was a much-quoted line on Earth, and also a famous dictum.

Su Lingyun knew her son was pretty impressive, so she was willing to leave decisions regarding matters relating to cultivation in his hands.

“Master.”

Gu Yan’er flitted over gracefully with a smile on her face.

Tan Xiu returned Tang Xing to his mother and followed up with a smile as well. “Since you have come out, I assume you have finished cultivating?”

“Just a moment ago,” Gu Yan’er answered with a nod.

“How far are you from breaking through to the Perfected Golden Immortal Stage?”

Gu Yan’er shook her head. “Since I haven’t cultivated that long, there’s no opportunity to break through to the Perfected Golden Immortal Stage right now. It won’t be an issue to achieve it within the next hundred years.”

Tang Xiu donned a faint smile and said, “Come along with me, then!”

The two of them appeared above a secluded island above the Misty Spring Ocean a while later. Just when Gu Yan’er felt puzzled over why they had come here, four shadows emerged from the mist.

“Your Majesty.”

The leader, Jin Shi, wore a face of reverence as he offered an interspatial ring.

Tang Xiu took the ring, checked its contents with his spiritual sense, and nodded satisfactorily. “What’s the status of the Intelligence Department’s expansion?”

“Our intel operatives have deeply infiltrated the Immortal Lyceum, so the intel network now spans across Aeternum, Obsidium, and Chalcedoneum, which are to the southeast, west, and north respectively. According to our estimations, it will only require three years for the intel network to fully integrate itself in these three regions. However, the expenditure for the intel and the purchase of Demon Stones and Demon Crystals have completely depleted the Immortal Crystals and Crystal Essences you have given me, Your Majesty.”

“Give me two months.” Tang Xiu pondered for a moment and said, “I’ll then provide you with enough Immortal Crystals and Crystal Essences to sustain the Intelligence Department for a hundred more years.”

“Understood!” Jin Shi acknowledged and then inquired suddenly, “Your Majesty, we have discovered something recently. An old man with an undetectable cultivation base arrived at our Immortal Lyceum a week or two ago and has been asking about you everywhere. From what we have speculated, he should be arriving in the Misty Spring Ocean soon.”

Tang Xiu asked him, “Who is he?”

“Old Sycamore,” replied Jin Shi.

Tang Xiu raised his brows and soliloquized. “I wasn’t expecting him to come looking for me. Fine. Since he has come, let me deal with him! Find out where he is at once and notify me as soon as possible. If you find his location, immediately inform him that I’m here.”

“Yes, Your Majesty!” Jin Shi replied and walked to the side before sending out ten Communication Signets. Soon after, one of them whistled through the misty ocean and glowed with a golden flame before everyone. Jin Shi handed this Communication Signet over to Tang Xiu, whose eyes narrowed slightly.

At Aether City.

Old Sycamore gazed at the scene across the street through a window of the biggest restaurant in the city. A squad of the Great Tang Empire’s soldiers donned in battle armor had surrounded two black-robed men over there. These two men had a high cultivation base and were already in the Crossing Tribulation Stage. On the other hand, the soldiers of the Great Tang Empire surrounding them were all just at the Great Ascension Stage, except for the captain who was in the Celestial Immortal Stage.

“Great Tang Empire, you’re going too far!”

An illusionary figure suddenly appeared before them. The grey-haired woman’s eyes filled with killing intent as she shouted, “Don’t blame us for acting heavy-handedly and killing all of you right here if you keep this up.”

The captain who wielded a long spear gazed at the woman as if she were their archenemy and said in a deep voice, “You have broken the law of the Great Tang Empire by brazenly killing someone within the city. If you were to announce your identity and your grudge with the deceased, you might have the chance to absolve your guilt. But if you continue acting so impudently, and ignore our advice, we will be forced to capture you and let the Justice Department punish you.”

The grey-haired woman became enraged. “This place belonged to the Immortal Lyceum and was the domain of Venerable Bella. You have seized it forcefully and even drawn up laws, so why would we surrender to you?”

The captain replied in a cold voice, “Our Great Tang Empire’s Emperor said these words once: ‘the strong reign supreme in the Immortal World.’ We can draw up laws because our Great Tang Empire has the strength and numbers to enforce them. As the old adage goes, ‘submit, and you shall prosper, or oppose and perish.’ If you aren’t willing to abide by the Great Tang Empire’s laws, you’re free to leave this place. But as you have committed a crime here, you will receive punishment for it.”

The white-haired woman questioned in an icy voice, “With just you all?”

Inside the tearoom, Old Sycamore actually approved of the words spoken by that captain. The Immortal World really was a place where strength reigned supreme. As long as one had absolute power, they could draw up laws. The words “submit, and you shall prosper, or oppose and perish” resonated perfectly with his heartfelt thoughts.

“What a pity. This Aether City is just a small city in the Immortal Lyceum, so it only has a weak Celestial Immortal cultivator defending it. The grey-haired woman is a late-stage Golden Immortal cultivator, which will make it difficult for them to subdue her.” Old Sycamore sighed ruefully.

“Hmm?”

Old Sycamore’s expression changed suddenly. He observed the young man that had entered the room in the guise of a tea room attendant.

The attendant looked at the scene outside through the window and then greeted him with cupped fists. “Greetings, Senior Sycamore. This junior is a member of the Great Tang Empire’s Intelligence Department.”

Old Sycamore furrowed his brows and then asked him, “What’s this Intelligence Department? And how do you know me?”

The server replied respectfully, “The Intelligence Department is the intel network of the Great Tang Empire. I’m the person-in-charge of Aether City. Actually, senior was already on the radar of our Intelligence Department even before you entered the Immortal Lyceum. A few minutes ago, I received a message from the department head to give you the answer you have been seeking for so long.”

Old Sycamore’s expression morphed as he asked in a deep voice, “Where is the Great Tang Heavenly Emperor?”

“As long as senior can help me settle the matter outside, you will be able to obtain His Majesty’s location right away.”

Whoosh…

Old Sycamore appeared mid-air above the street instantly, suppressing the grey-haired woman with a powerful aura while saying in a cold voice, “You have two choices. State your identity and your grudge with the deceased, or accept death.”

The grey-haired woman’s pupils contracted, and shock filled her eyes. She had never dreamt that a cultivator of the Perfected Golden Immortal Stage existed in Aether City. And that too a cultivator with a formidable cultivation base that was higher than the early Perfected Golden Immortal Stage.

“Senior, I’m Snowfrost, the sect master of the Heavenly Arcanum Sect. The person who we chased till here and then killed is Xuan Fei, a traitor of my sect. He killed my daughter and stole my sect’s Sol Immortal Mirror. Although we don’t look well upon the Great Tang Empire’s laws, we had no intention of violating them deliberately.”

Old Sycamore glanced at the captain and said in a cold voice, “She has already spoken. It’s up to you to decide how to handle it.”

The captain contemplated for a while and took out a Communication Signet. It returned back after a few minutes, and realization dawned upon his face once he went through the information he received. He then said in a neutral voice, “You’re indeed the sect master of the Heavenly Arcanum Sect. It appears that a major incident took place in your sect in the last 6 months too, so you seem to have spoken the truth. Never mind, then. If you’re willing to live by my Great Tang Empire’s laws, you can stay in our Immortal Lyceum, but if you feel dissatisfied with them, you’re free to leave.”

Snowfrost mused over it for a moment and then said in a soft voice, “Actually, the laws of the Great Tang Empire are pretty good. They act as a force of deterrence towards criminals and their ilk. We’re willing to stay behind as long as the Great Tang Empire doesn’t make things difficult for the Heavenly Arcanum Sect.”

She then glanced towards Old Sycamore and asked respectfully, “May I ask who you are, Senior?”

Old Sycamore replied indifferently, “There is no need for you to know that. You just need to act per the laws of the Great Tang Empire, and that will be enough. You all can leave now.”

“Understood!”

Snowfrost smiled bitterly and left with the two other disciples after cupping her fists.

Swoosh…

The tea room attendant shot a jade slip towards Old Sycamore and disappeared after that. A few moments later, Old Sycamore glanced towards the tearoom and furrowed his brows slightly since he had discovered that the attendant was no longer inside the tearoom.

“This is interesting.”

Covering a range of five thousand kilometers around him with his spiritual sense, the smile on Old Sycamore’s face froze instantly. In just a few seconds, the intel operative of the Great Tang Empire, who hadn’t even become an Immortal yet, had surprisingly disappeared without a trace from this range.

“How can this be possible?

“It’s impossible for him to have left so quickly.

“Have my senses failed to detect a concealment array present in this Aether City? No, wait. This doesn’t feel like a concealment array. Is it perhaps a… spatial teleportation array?”

Old Sycamore trembled and raised his guard immediately.

A few days later.

Old Sycamore rushed to the location mentioned in the jade slip that the tearoom attendant had given him. When he arrived at that secluded island, he saw Tang Xiu and Gu Yan’er drinking tea calmly while sitting cross-legged before a tea table.

“It’s been a while, but you are as classy as ever, Old Sycamore!”

Tang Xiu raised his head slowly and let out a faint smile towards Old Sycamore.

Old Sycamore gazed at Tang Xiu with complex emotions and asked in a gruff voice, “I want an explanation.”

Tang Xiu tapped the tabletop lightly, and the cup of aromatic tea on top floated up gently before stopping in front of Old Sycamore. He then smiled and said, “This tea is to thank you for helping my Great Tang Empire’s soldiers in Aether City, please have it.”

Old Sycamore remained silent for a moment but decided to accept it in the end. After draining the cup in one gulp, he asked, “You ought to tell me now, right?”

The smile on Tang Xiu’s face faded away gradually, and a wry expression replaced it. “Is an explanation really that important? He’s already dead, and you have your own life too. Why must you tie yourself down with emotional entanglement?”