The Dian Clan were one of the most prominent members of the Thundercloud Sect. Their clan had been sending descendants to the Sect for many generations and dozens if not hundreds of their experts had been born from the clan. With such power, they of course were the leading family in the city that neighbored the Thundercloud Sect. As a first rate power, the Thundercloud Sect ran the whole Flying Wind Province and the Dian Clan was a major player in their provincial capital.

This is going to be far more troublesome than I thought it would be.

Given Dian Huifang’s level, he figured it would cause trouble when she told her family that she had decided to live out her life taking care of a bunch of bug people. Who in their right mind would be happy about having a Nascent Soul just leave forever? It wasn’t uncommon for a Cultivator to disappear for years or even decades at a time training themselves in remote and unusual locations. It was also the reality of the Cultivator world that people would die pursuing treasures or fighting their enemies. It was another thing entirely for them to tell you they were going to leave forever, voluntarily. Especially for such a ridiculous reason.

The Airship touched down outside of the aptly named Thundercloud City. It was something of an insult to fly over cities and settlements, looking down upon the residents from above, even though most who could fly were Nascent Souls. Even for people at the height of power, it was an extremely simple gesture of respect and also personal safety. What if there happened to be a new Nascent Soul in a city the cultivator flew over? Was it worth picking a fight because they didn’t want to waste a few seconds going around?

The unusual vessel gained them a lot of attention and it wasn’t long before a large group of city guards led by a squad wearing the uniform of the Thundercloud Sect had approached them. With so many people watching, Sage didn’t dare to put the Airship back away into the Universe Ring or his Inner World as he preferred to keep such treasures hidden. Instead, he was happy to explain to those approaching about the Airship. Even if he wasn’t a great businessman, even he knew not to pass up on perfectly good advertising opportunities.

“This is called an Airship! It’s a new product that will soon be sold by Thousand Treasures. Just think of it as a budget Flying Ship. If a Flying Ship is a palace, then the Airship is a normal house. Even the most humble house can still be a home. So, it may not be as large and luxurious as a Flying Ship, but an Airship can still fly! With an Airship, the dream of traveling through the skies isn’t only for the most rich and powerful.”

The guards seemed quite excited. Though they were cultivators, they were only of the second and third rank. Most of them had already reached the peak of their potential and while they’d seen Flying Ships before such things were far out of their reach. Only members of the most rich and powerful Sects and Clans ever had the privilege of traveling on one. Even then, only the most important people in those groups ever got to own a Flying Ship. Sage was pretty sure the dream of flying through the sky was pretty universal for most humans. At least unless you grew up underground, or were afraid of heights.

After doing some advertising, the Thundercloud Sect’s people stopped examining the strange vehicle and that’s when Sage introduced Dian Huifang. She showed off her Clan Badge and the Thundercloud Sect nodded and reduced their vigilance. The Airship and its thousand flying guards had been quite the spectacle and they had to make sure it wasn’t a threat. After Huifang’s identity was confirmed, Sage left the thousand Dragoons with the Airship and went along with her. Songji insisted on accompanying them, taking in the sights of Thundercloud City. She led them around sampling the various street vendors' foods and buying trinkets and accessories.

“Huifang, please show me all the best places in Thundercloud City!”

Songji’s appearance was vastly different from her words, the juxtaposition of her tight black leather and little sister persona somehow seemed endearing to Dian Huifang and she agreed. Sage followed the two as they enjoyed the city, wasting away most of a day before they finally reached the Dian Clan Compound in the evening. Huifang got vastly different reactions from the members of her clan when she greeted them. Some of them seemed to love her, greeting her with heartfelt respect. The majority though were barely polite, quickly excusing themselves from her presence and then glaring at her in the distance with only lightly veiled contempt. Sage was curious, nearly asking Huifang what was going on, but he was also worried he wouldn’t like the answer.

They attended a large dinner that evening, Sage and Songji were Dian Huifang’s guests and they were quite impressed by how people in the clan ate dinner together. It was something of a feast with hundreds of people of varying ages in attendance, but after asking around Sage learned this was a nightly event. Dian Huifang merely smiled at what she considered a compliment.

A large and jovial woman sitting across the table from them smiled and explained for him, “This is one of the ways the clan inspires unity and loyalty. We are all one big happy family. The more familiar we are with each other, the more we will care for each other in the future. The Dian Clan will never be like those other clans, torn apart by internal strife and competition. We all work to make things better for our clan, not ourselves.”

Then the woman’s eyes fell onto Dian Huifang and an odd look crossed her face. Then she quickly took a drink and joined a nearby conversation quickly, like she was eager to escape talking anymore with them.

Very unusual. Huifang seems to be quite a unique existence among her clan.

After the dinner, the three of them were summoned to a meeting hall and faced with a broad shouldered man wearing a cape of blue scales with golden epaulets. He smiled widely at Dian Huifang and rose up from his seat, scooping the woman into a hug.

“Ow, Uncle Rong, too tight!”

The man laughed and then let her down. The two guards standing to the sides of the man’s chair were watching Sage and Songji, but they didn’t make any moves. Huifang and ‘Uncle Rong’ seemed to be well acquainted and they made some small talk for a while, talking about other people in their clan that Sage didn’t know. Only after a few minutes did they seem to get to business.

“So, how is your training Huifang? It’s been years since I last saw you.”

Huifang ignored the question and instead she bluntly changed the topic, “I am here to say my goodbyes. I will likely never return to the Clan again. I wanted to thank Uncle Rong for taking such good care of me for so many years.”

The man’s face suddenly darkened, “What? What happened? What are you talking about, girl? Are you in trouble? Who’s after you? Are you dying?”

He rapidly covered many options, his concern making him flustered and anxious. Dian Huifang, on the other hand, was completely calm. She even dropped down to her knees and bowed low, bringing her forehead to the ground, kowtowing in front of the even more confused man.

“Girl, stop it! You’re scaring me. It sounds like you’re going to your death, stop messing around!”

She kept her head on the ground, “I can only offer my thanks for your guidance and support, Uncle. Please forgive me for not living up to your high hopes. Please accept my apology.”

“I can’t accept unless you tell me what is going on!”

Dian Huifang didn’t lift her head, “Uncle, I have already promised not to leave this man.”

Immediately, Uncle Rong’s eyes shifted to Sage and he felt a thunderous pressure filling the room.

Why did she have to go and say it like that?