The Sovereign’s Ascension

Two days later in the Falling Aquatic Residence, Lin Yun was sitting inside a pavilion and changing into white clothes as he drank by himself. He had arrived half a day ago and was currently waiting for someone who was running late. But he wasn’t in a hurry nor was he worried that his identity would be revealed.

An hour later, a figure slowly walked over and sat in front of Lin Yun. The guest was Luo Yu, the agent responsible for the Falling Aquatic Residence. Lin Yun was here to kill the geniuses, so he naturally needed their whereabouts. From his previous experience, Lin Yun knew that Luo Yu was a good source of information. After all, as a major figure in Skymound City, there was nothing he didn’t know about.

Luo Yu examined Lin Yun briefly before he smiled, “Sorry about that. There’s a guest in the Falling Aquatic Residence that required my master to personally attend to. This is why I’m late.”

Those words surprised Lin Yun. The owner of the Falling Aquatic Residence who didn’t even place the Indigomoon Elysium in his eyes actually went to receive a guest personally. This made Lin Yun even more curious about the guest. But this had nothing to do with him as he asked, “Are you surprised to see me?”

Luo Yu poured a cup of wine for himself and smiled, “It would be weird if I wasn’t surprised. There’s a rumor in Skymound City that you’re dead and I even sent someone out to investigate the matter. From the information I gathered, all signs pointed to you being dead. So how can I not be surprised to see someone who should be dead?”

“Oh? What was the rumor?” Lin Yun smiled.

“You really want to know?” asked Luo Yu.

“Go ahead,” answered Lin Yun.

“The news came from the seven geniuses. They said that you were arrogant and wanted to sweep through them. In the end, Chen Ziyu defeated you in just three moves…” Luo Yu then threw a probing gaze to Lin Yun, to which he could sense a chilling killing aura in Lin Yun’s eye. He then smiled, “There’s also another rumor, but it’s being sealed by the Chen Clan. That one said that you were killed by a quasi-Heavenly Soul Realm expert with the Profound Note Bell. I’m curious as to which story is true?”

“It doesn’t matter. What matters is the fact that I’m still here,” said Lin Yun. Turning to the spiritual lake, he asked, “I wish to know the whereabouts of the seven.”

The killing aura that Lin Yun leaked out when he said those words left Luo Yu shocked. He didn’t know what Lin Yun experienced to possess such a terrifying killing aura.

“You want to go after them? It won’t be easy for you to survive, so you shouldn’t be reckless,” said Luo Yu.

“I know, but you can’t persuade me,” replied Lin Yun. He didn’t give Luo Yu the chance to continue to persuade him.

“Alright then.” Luo Yu sighed. “The seven of them should be scattered throughout the city. However, they should be gathering in the Falling Aquatic Mountain tomorrow.”

“Oh?” Lin Yun was surprised to hear that.

“The top three of the nine overlord forces – Indigomoon Elysium, Northern Snow Manor, and Heavenly Demon Pavilion – will gather at the Falling Aquatic Mountain tomorrow. They’ll host a last search for geniuses to be guided by a seventh soul Heavenly Soul Realm expert,” explained Luo Yu.

“Oh, I remember it now.” Lin Yun nearly forgot about that. It was widely spread throughout Skymound City before the secret realm opened. There were rumors that the seven geniuses all came back for this matter.

The Ancient Southern Domain was occupied by the nine forces known as the overlord forces. The strongest would definitely be the Indigomoon Elysium. But the Northern Snow Manor and Heavenly Demon Pavilion weren’t really weaker. At the very least, they were a lot stronger than the remaining six forces.

So one could imagine how enticing it was to be accepted by the three forces who were currently gathered together. The Draconic Banquet was almost four months away, so prospective disciples were eager to receive the guidance of a Heavenly Soul Realm expert of seventh soul. After all, these weren’t the kind of existences that would usually give guidance.

“The Falling Aquatic Mountain?” Lin Yun raised his head to look at the Falling Aquatic Mountain shrouded in the mist.

“That’s right.”

“So the guest is from the three forces?” Lin Yun suddenly recalled that the owner was receiving a guest personally.

“Perhaps.” Luo Yu gave a mysterious smile. This matter involved the lord of the mountain, so Luo Yu definitely wouldn’t reveal too much.

“I’ll be going now,” said Luo Yu.

“Are you in a hurry?” asked Lin Yun.

Luo Yu didn’t turn around and smiled, “We’ll drink again if you can survive tomorrow. If you’re dead, then I’ll make up with three cups at your tomb.”

Does that mean that he will help me collect my corpse? Lin Yun glanced at Luo Yu and said, “Thanks.”

Lin Yun took off the sword box and placed it before him like a tomb. He smiled, “Are you willing to drink with me?”

After that, Lin Yun started drinking. He didn’t have a habit of drinking wine before killing someone, nor did he need to drink wine to embolden himself. He only wanted to drink wine with someone. If there was no one around, then his Flower Burial Sword would do. When night came, Lin Yun finished his wine and sat down to meditate.

The next day when the first glimpse of dawn tore through the clouds, Lin Yun opened his eyes. He raised the cup to the sky. Following his action, the Flower Burial Sword jumped out of the sword box as countless crimson petals drifted out.

Lin Yun stretched out and grabbed onto the Flower Burial Sword. Drawing his sword, the flower petals flew through the sky as his sword shined with a cold light.

“You’re a great sword.” Then, Lin Yun asked, “Are you willing to kill with me?”

Right after these words, the sword radiated brightly. Lin Yun then headed towards the Falling Aquatic Mountain, “Let’s go then!”

There was a massive clearing at the waist of the mountain. Today, the three overlord forces were gathered and had set up three massive stages. Each stage was different. On the Heavenly Demon Pavilion’s stage, there was a nine meter tall stone statue. The stone statue was a mix between a man and demon. It looked extremely sinister. It was clearly an object, but it was shrouded in a terrifying aura.

There were swords on the Northern Snow Manor’s stage, each flickering sharply. Whenever the wind blew, the swords would emit a buzzing noise.

The Indigomoon Elysium’s stage was even more bizarre. The stage didn’t have any arrangements and the only thing that was different was a purple moon hanging in the sky. There were many cultivators gathered around these three stages.

The Heavenly Demon Pavilion, Northern Snow Manor, and Indigomoon Elysium sent their experts over to oversee the process. After all, the Dragoncloud Ranking was a competition for the Dragon Fortune, which involved the fortune of the entire Ancient Southern Domain.

The nine overlord forces naturally hoped that more of their disciples would occupy the Draconic Banquet to ensure their rule over the Ancient Southern Domain. It was natural for these forces to send their experts. As for the Indigomoon Elysium’s representative, it was naturally Qing Ruoyou.

She wore a purple dress, looking graceful and elegant. From afar, it was easy for anyone to be subdued by her beauty.

“I believe everyone knows that each of our forces have set up a stage to recruit disciples. Today will be the last day for Skymound City. The rules are the same as usual, anyone can participate regardless of background or talent. There are three stages for you to pick from and the corresponding force will give you their judgement,” said Luo Yu as he continued, “Anyone who catches the eye of the three forces can receive the personal guidance of a Heavenly Soul Realm elder. Then again, the prerequisite is that you have to get onto the stage.”

When Luo Yu finished his announcement, the crowd got worked up since it was rare for the three forces to recruit disciples. If the Draconic Banquet wasn’t almost four months away, they wouldn’t show up at the same time to snatch away these disciples. If it wasn’t for the fact that they didn’t have a choice, there was no need for them to benefit others.

As for why the six other forces didn’t come, the reason was simple. It was because the Indigomoon Elysium didn’t want them to come. They were already giving the Heavenly Demon Pavilion and Northern Snow Manor some face by letting them join. After all, the two other forces weren’t any inferior when compared to the Indigomoon Elysium.

“As long as we’re on the stage? That seems easy. Let me give it a try.” A youth stood up from the crowd. He was in the greater Yin-Yang stage and was emitting a powerful aura. With just a glance, everyone could roughly estimate the strength of this youth. In that split second, all eyes were on him.

They were all curious as to which stage he would pick. Under their gazes, the youth soared into the sky and went towards the Heavenly Demon Pavilion’s stage. When he got close, the stone statue came to life as it released a ferocious roar. The shockwave from the roar made many people throw out a mouthful of blood.

This made the youth’s face change as he began to contemplate if he should retreat. But the stone statue didn’t hesitate as it charged over and threw its palm out at him. A second later, the youth was turned into a cloud of blood, dying without even leaving his corpse behind.

This was a shocking scene, which frightened many people to the point of their faces turning pale. In the blink of an eye, the youth had died. The crowd woke up from their stupor and understood that this wasn’t a game.

“What a piece of trash. Do you really think that anyone can stand on the Heavenly Demon Pavilion’s stage? Let me do it!” A disdainful voice sounded out. When everyone turned their heads over to the source of the voice, they began to exclaim.

“It’s Qin Xu!” The one who spoke was Qin Xu of the seven geniuses.