Su Youji’s body trembled.

His name was Ji Ning?

“He came for me?” Su Youji’s mind was filled with many complex thoughts and feelings. She felt a hint of excitement, but she also felt a hint of remorse! She knew that this place was where the Eastmoke branch was headquartered, and that it naturally was protected by many restrictive spells. This was an extremely tightly guarded place. Although Ji Ning was quite formidable, fighting in an enemy’s nest was still an extremely problematic affair.

She had thought that Ji Ning would spend a million years in the Astral Islands. She had planned in quietly training in the legacy left behind by Daolord Feixian the Exalted, as Feixian’s skills primarily lay in the realms of charm, illusion, and control! She was a Daolord who was so terrifyingly powerful that she was given the title of ‘the Exalted’. Generally speaking, Daolords who were slightly weaker than her would instantly fall under her control after a single glance!

She was an individual who was incredibly powerful!

Su Youji was born with tremendous affinity for skills involving charm and allure. Even when she had no legacies to guide her, she had been able to create a charming technique of tremendous power. This was why she had been able to pass all of the deadly trials left behind by Feixian the Exalted, and in the end she was found to be qualified to become Feixian’s personal disciple!

“My original plan had been to train here for ten thousand years and reach the third stage of the ‘Flying Immortal’ secret-art, then take control of the eighteen World-level cultivators outside and leave stealthily.” Even right now, Su Youji was capable of taking control over two or three World-level cultivators at the same time. However, this sort of mind control spell could only be maintained for a brief period of time.

Su Youji had never attempted to leave by force. This was a branch headquarters of the Bluegrace Sect; who would dare to try to force their way in or out of a place like this? Her goal was to take control of those eighteen, then leave stealthily.

“Should I let him in?” Fairy Qingfan asked.

“Yes.” Su Youji nodded.

“Understood.” Fairy Qingfan looked at Su Youji and smiled. “You look so dazed and befuddled right now. What sort of a relationship do you have with him, exactly?”

Su Youji shook her head. “What do you mean, ‘dazed and befuddled’? I’m his retainer. He is my master.”

“Master…?” Fairy Qingfan was startled.

……

At the entrance to Fairy Qingfan’s estate.

Ning and Fairy Qingfan were continuing to chat here.

“For you to join the Bluegrace Sect shows that karmic ties continue to bind us. Enter my estate. Stay here for a while and have a good conversation with me. As of late, your big sister’s been bored senseless.” Fairy Qingfan tossed Ning an intentionally playful look. Now that she knew that Ning was Su Youji’s master, she found herself quite impressed. This white-robed youth was definitely an figure of extraordinary power and ability. To have such an extraordinary figure address her as ‘big sister’ was quite diverting.

Ning gave her a look, then chuckled. “Please lead the way, senior apprentice-sister.”

“Mm.” Fairy Qingfan turned and walked towards her estate, with Ning following behind her.

The eighteen World-level cultivators seated outside all watched as this transpired. When the black-robed elder saw Fairy Qingfan actively invite Ning into the estate, a rather ugly look appeared on his face. He barked coldly, “Junior apprentice-sister Qingfan, don’t try to seduce this new junior apprentice-brother of ours into helping you out.”

“None of your damn business.” Fairy Qingfan didn’t even turn back to look at him. She simply let out a cold snort.

“Junior apprentice-brother Darknorth, remember… there are some things which you should do and some things which you should not do.” A chill filled the voice of the black-robed elder.

……

By now, Su Youji had already emerged from her room and was staring at the pathways in front of her, waiting eagerly.

Finally, Fairy Qingfan emerged from around the bends, and behind her was a white-robed youth who bore a longsword on his back. The youth looked the same as he always had, the same as he had in her memories.

“Master…” Su Youji stared at him, her heart filled with many emotions.

Guilt?

Gratitude?

In the Astral Islands, she had battled until she was at the point of absolute despair and exhaustion. When she saw Ji Ning appear, she had actually wept. And now, they were meeting at the Eastsmoke branch of the Bluegrace Sect. Even for someone like Ji Ning, a fight here would be quite troublesome. And yet… he had still come.

“It is always you helping me out, rather than vice versa. I’m your retainer, but I’ve never been able to do anything for you.” In this instant, Su Youji suddenly realized that she would never be able to forget how Ji Ning had saved her from the Astral Islands. That moment had been indelibly imprinted into her very soul… and now, they were meeting again here at this branch of the Bluegrace Sect.

“Youji.” Ning walked over towards her.

“Master.” Su Youji nodded slightly. “I’ve caused trouble for you.”

“I hear that this branch leader of the Eastsmoke branch is mainly trying to steal your treasures. I also heard something about a statue of Feixian the Exalted?” Ning asked.

Su Youji looked at Ning with some degree of surprise. “You already know?”

Ning turned to glance at the nearby Fairy Qingfan. “Fairy Qingfan, if Youji wishes to leave, who will try to stop her?”

Fairy Qingfan could instantly sense that this white-robed youth was now speaking in a very different way and had a very different attitude. When they had been at the entrance to her estate, he had modestly addressed her as ‘senior apprentice-sister Qingfan’. Although he still spoke in a very relaxed way, his words and his demeanor revealed his absolute self-confidence and his dominating presence.

“If little sister Youji wishes to leave, she would first need to deal with those eighteen World-level cultivators standing guard,” Fairy Qingfan said. “They are keeping a tight watch, and if anything happens they will immediately make a report to that fool of a branch leader. When that happens, that fool will undoubtedly order many of our other World-level cultivators to attack. In fact, he might even activate the many formations protecting this place. Once that happens, there really will be nowhere to run.”

Ning nodded slowly. This was what he had expected.

“Master, give me another hundred thousand years and I might be able to work something out,” Su youji said. A hundred thousand years would actually be millions of years if she used a temporal acceleration treasure. That should be more than enough.

“If too much time passes, new variables will enter the equation,” Ning said. “Since this man was able to become the local branch leader, he probably has certain connections within the main base. If he wants to barge into the estate of a fellow disciple and seize an unaffiliated World-level cultivator, all he has to do is find a suitable excuse and he’ll probably be able to convince Daolord Bluegrace into agreeing. You’ve only been here a few centuries, which is why he has been able to bide his time. If you wait too long, that will no longer be the case.”

Su Youji’s face turned pale. Right. Once the local branch leader received permission from the main base, he would be able to enter this estate and seize her. By then, she would have no recourse at all.

“Leave it to me. I’ll bring you out of here,” Ning said.

Su Youji felt a warm feeling in her heart. Although she was worried about Ning, as his retainer she held enormous faith in him. He was indeed an absolute freak of nature!

“Fellow Daoist Ji Ning.” The nearby Fairy Qingfan said in a rather unhappy manner, “You must not act rashly. If you remain inside, they’ll be limited by the rules of the sect and won’t dare to cause trouble. But if you were to take little sister Youji out of this place… they’ll be allowed to attack. They won’t show mercy to an outsider who isn’t a member of our sect.”

“Fairy Qingfan, all you need to do is stand back and watch.” Ning turned his head and said to Su Youji, “I’ll take you into my estate-world.”

“Alright.” Su Youji nodded.

Fairy Qingfan said unhappily, “Little sister Youji, this isn’t…”

Ning just waved his hand, drawing Su Youji into his estate-treasure. He then turned and began to walk towards the outside.

“You-!” Fairy Qingfan immediately hurried after him.

The entrance to the estate.

Ning emerged from the estate and saw the eighteen World-level cultivators seated outside of it.

“Leaving already?” The black-robed elder stared at Ning in a very solemn manner, as did all of the other cultivators.

“Did Fairy Qingfan ask you to help her out by taking the Flamefairy out with you?” The black-robed elder’s voice turned icy cold.

“She did not,” Ning said.

“Junior apprentice-brother, the Flamefairy’s matter has grave implications for everyone here. As a result, we can’t just let you leave like this.” A nearby red-haired child spoke in a hoarse voice.

“Do you plan on inspecting my treasures?” Ning frowned.

“Cultivators often hide many of their secrets in their treasures. We won’t insist on inspecting everything by force. However… you will need to swear a lifeblood oath that you are not taking the Flamefairy out of this place.” The black-robed elder said calmly, “If you truly are not carrying her with you, then this oath will have no impact on you at all. But if you are… then this lifeblood oath will immediately rebound upon you and devour your life. You’ll die on the spot.”

“Swear the lifeblood oath and we will let you leave.” Swish! A dark-red crystalline rod was sent flying towards Ning.

Ning glanced at the dark-red rod, then shook his head.

Suddenly, he manifested three heads and six arms. His six arms dramatically increased in size, and his palms became so large as to block out the skies as he struck out towards the eighteen cultivators nearby.

“What?!”

“Careful!”

Fairy Qingfan was standing right behind him, and her eyes immediately bulged out. He actually went straight to fighting? How could Su Youji’s master be such a fool? He actually dared to launch an attack within the Eastsmoke branch of the Bluegrace Sect?!

“Hmph.”

“What a fool.”

The eighteen World-level cultivators instantly activated their formation, allowing Immortal energy to pool together and then flow over their bodies. The reason there were eighteen of them here was so that they could join forces and fight against tough foes. Even if Su Youji tried to use her bugbeasts and golems to force her way out of the estate, they would be able to hold on against her for a period of time.

BOOM!

As the six enormous palms swept towards them, an enormous collision could be heard as one of the World-level cultivators was captured as easily as one might pick up a little chick. The man was forcibly dragged into Ning’s estate-treasure, the entire formation having been forcibly torn apart.

Whoooooosh. The six enormous palms continued to howl forth and strike out towards them.

“Flee!”

“How can he be this powerful?!”

“Run away!”

The remaining World-level cultivators were all stupefied. This initial clash had just resulted in Ning capturing eleven of them, and the rest hurriedly began to scatter and flee.

However, the enormous power ripples caused by this clash spread out to encompass the entire Eastsmoke branch, which was merely ten million kilometers in size. Every single World-level cultivator here was able to easily sense that something had happened, and many streams of godsense swept outwards towards this region.

“Who dare you! How dare you barge into our Bluegrace Sect!” One stream of godsense carried a voice that exploded loudly within Ning’s mind.

“Hmph!” Ning suddenly poured out his own godsense, sweeping it in all four directions in an all-encompassing wave. Thanks to the nurturing effect of his azureflower mist energy, Ning’s soulw as comparable to that of a Daolord of the First Step, as was his godsense. Other World-level cultivators truly had far weaker godsenses by comparison.

As Ning’s godsense flooded out, it boomed as it slammed into the streams of godsense that had flooded this area. Ning’s godsense crushed everything in its path, smashing apart nearly three hundred different streams of godsense and chaosense. The difference between a World-level cultivator and a Daolord was simply too apparent.

Rumble…

For a moment, the only stream of godsense present within the ten million kilometer region of the Eastsmoke Sect belonged to Ji Ning. All the others had been completely crushed and wiped out!

“The Flamefairy is my retainer. Today, I’ve come to the Eastsmoke branch of the Bluegrace Sect to take my retainer away from this place.” Ning’s voice boomed out, echoing in every corner of the entire Eastsmoke branch. “I trust that most of you know about the matter of your branch leader seeking to steal my retainer’s treasures, and you all know in your hearts who is in the right and who is in the wrong. I am going to take my retainer out of this place, and I’d rather not launch a massacre… but if anyone who seeks to bar my path shall die!”

His voice blasted out across every inch of the local branch’s territory. Every single World-level cultivator found his godsense or chaosense completely suppressed, and they were all completely unable to push back.

Fairy Qingfan stood there at the entrance to her home, staring in amazement as this all happened. When she heard this earth-shattering voice boom out in her mind, she couldn’t help but be shocked once again!