The flying ship cut through the sky like an arrow loosed from a divine bow. At such speed, wind should've battered the hull and stopped him from even being able to stand atop the ship's deck. But thanks to the formation, the ship ride was very comfortable. In fact, if not for the rapidly passing scenery beneath them, there would absolutely no indication that they were even flying.

  Li Yuan sat near the edge of the deck, one hand resting lightly on the railing as he tried to gauge their speed with guesswork alone. Alas, he had nothing to even compare this speed to and could only say that the ship was flying multiple times the speed of sound. Comparing it to a fighter jet from his past life would not be wrong.

  They had left the Outer Sect mountains behind hours ago, yet the terrain continued to change rapidly beneath them. He realised that he had misjudged its speed before when he said that they'll arrive home in a day or two. At this speed, they'll arrive at Redleaf Prefecture by late afternoon. Or maybe even before that.

  At the helm stood the Golden Core cultivator, her posture straight and unmoving as she powered and guided the flying ship through the sky. Now that she was no longer releasing her aura, one might mistake her for an ordinary mortal, albeit one with extraordinary beauty.

  But as soon as he activated his Spirit Residue Following Technique, he could see her steadily channeling a large amount of Qi into the flying ship. It boggled his mind that she had been doing that for the last few hours and would continue to do so for the next few hours until they reached their destination.

  'The Qi reserves of a Golden Core cultivator is truly unfathomably vast.' He thought in amazement, feeling that he himself would be lucky if he was able to power the ship for even a few minutes.

  He eventually got bored of watching the scenery blur past them and tried to learn the Body Tempering Cultivation Manual he'd gained from the Fallen Prince's cave. Wanting to see if he could take a step into the technique by learning just a little bit. However, he soon realised that his heart was too excited to cultivate.

  Memories of the past surfaced in his mind. His father's stern but expectant gaze. His mother's teary smile as she bid him farewell on his journey to the Nine Peak Sect. His clan's expectant and hopeful gazes. He let out a sigh and decided not to bother with cultivation anymore. Trying to cultivate with a mind in such turmoil would only cause him trouble.

  Instead, he leaned back and gazed up at the sky where the distant clouds were passing by them at a glacial pace. It was during this quiet stretch that he felt someone watching him. He turned slightly and found Rou Lin's eyes on him. The instant their gazes met, she stiffened and looked away, a faint blush rising to her cheeks.

  He smiled faintly. "Do I have something on my face, sister Lin?" he asked.

  She shook her head quickly. "No. You just… looked troubled, brother Yuan."

  "Troubled?" he echoed, amused.

  She hesitated but nodded. Rather than deny it outright, he decided to change the direction of the conversation. "Well, you already know why I'm going back home. And you'll meet my family soon enough. So why don't you tell me something about your family as well."

  Rou Lin's expression shifted almost immediately at his words. The faint warmth in her cheeks fading into something more restraint. "There's not much to tell." She said, her voice bitter.

  He realised that her relationship with her family must not be good and backed off. "If you don't want to tell, then that's perfectly fine Sister Lin. I won't pry."

  Rou Lin looked down on the ground for a while before she finally looked up, her expression distant. "No. You've always been honest with me, so it's only fair that I tell you about my family as well."

  "Sister Lin, there's really no nee-"

  "I'm from the Zhao family that rules the Nightsky Prefecture." She said. "It's an Eight grade family, and I'm the daughter of the clan head."

  He nodded, distantly recalling reading about the Nightsky Prefecture. From what he knew, it was quite a long distance away from the Nine Peak Sect. About ten times as far as the Sect was from his own Redleaf Prefecture. That's ten months of travel for someone of his cultivation. And Rou Lin must've made that journey when she was even weaker.

  The fact that Rou Lin made that long journey, and didn't take the surname Zhao despite being the clan head's daughter told him that things were indeed not simple.

  "What was it like in your family?" He asked.

  "I was the clan head's daughter. But I was not born to his primary wife, or even his concubines. But to a lowly maid." She said with some bitterness.

  "Oh…" He said. Already not liking where this story was going.

  "For years, my mother and I lived in a side courtyard. The primary wife and her daughters… did not treat us kindly." She spoke calmly, but there was a tightness beneath her composure. "Nothing dramatic enough to cause open scandal. Just… small things to make our lives very difficult and to remind us of our place."

  "And your father?" Li Yuan asked.

  "He was indifferent," she replied. "Or at least he used to be… until they awakened my meridians at the age of twelve, and found out that I was incredibly gifted."

  "The moment he realised my value, everything changed. We got servants of our own. Resources were allocated for my cultivation. And even the primary wife began smiling at me." A faint, humourless curve touched her lips. "Life was good once again. For a while at least."

  Li Yuan watched her closely but said nothing.

  "Then one night," she continued, "I overheard my father and the primary wife discussing my future. They planned to hand me over to the local court magistrate, to serve as his concubine. In exchange, the court magistrate would secure Foundation Establishment Pills for the primary wife's children."

  "Damn. That's one heck of a shit father you got there." Li Yuan said.

  "Yeah." She said simply.

  "Seeing as you're here and not popping out babies for that magistrate, I assume you ran?" He asked, and Rou Lin nodded.

  "My mother helped me prepare and I left for Nine Peak Sect that very night. It was far enough that my father's influence won't reach there. But my mother.… she stayed behind." There was no dramatic bitterness in her tone anymore, only quiet concern. "I don't know how she is treated now."

  Li Yuan's gaze hardened slightly as he looked out toward the horizon. After a moment, he spoke evenly. "You should send a letter back home. If your clan learns that you have become the personal disciple of a Nascent Soul expert, your mother will become untouchable. They would not dare mistreat your mother anymore, not unless they wish to invite destruction."

  Rou Lin looked at him, hope flickering faintly in her eyes and he wondered if she really hadn't thought of doing that.

  "If you haven't sent word," he added, "you should."

  She nodded. "I will. Thank you, Brother Yuan."

  He nodded. Not saying anymore after that and a brief silence settled between them before she turned the conversation back toward him. "What about you? What was your family like?"

  He considered the question carefully. "I am my parents' only son, so they doted on me." he said at last. "Since I was young, they gave me everything they could. Resources were limited, but they never held back on effort. Of course, they were still strict on me when it was time to train. But my mom would always dote on me even more afterward."

  Rou Lin listened attentively.

  "With their support, a small measure of talent, and bit of bribery, I managed to enter the Nine Peak Sect. And as they say, the rest is history." He finished, not wanting to tell her about how badly the original Li Yuan had suffered in the sect.

  Instead, he smiled for her. "Compared to you, my life has been… smooth."

  And he wasn't lying either. As much as he saw himself as Li Yuan now. He still knew that he and the original Li Yuan were different people. And unlike the original Li Yuan, he got his cheat as soon as he arrived in this world, and hasn't really suffered any true hardship since.

  Rou Lin gave a small laugh. "You don't need to feel guilty for not suffering, Brother Lin."

  He huffed softly in response.

  After a pause, she tilted her head slightly. "Before, you told me that you went to the Outer Belt alone. My teacher won't allow me anywhere near it until Late Foundation Establishment, and even then I would need companions."

  "That is reasonable," he replied dryly. Even with his bullshit skills, he had died twice in that place. For someone like Rou Lin, wouldn't going to that place with her current cultivation level merely be asking for death?

  "Then how do you manage it?"

  "I'm simply built different." He replied in mock arrogance, and got a rather unimpressed glare in return.

  "Okay, okay. I'll tell you. I relied on a stealth technique," he said. "Veil of Borrowed Heaven."

  Her eyes brightened with curiosity. "What does it do?"

  And so, he explained how the technique masked his presence by aligning his Qi fluctuations with the ambient energy in the environment, allowing him to blend in with the world.

  He even gave her a brief demonstration, after which her questions grew more detailed, probing into applications and limitations. After that, the conversation shifted naturally from personal histories to cultivation methods and survival strategies within the Forbidden Forest.

  The hours slipped by as they spoke. Above them, the sun reached its zenith and started to move to the west. At the front of the vessel, the Golden Core cultivator remained steady and silent, making no indication of whether she was listening in on their conversation or not, her Qi flowing endlessly into the ship's core formation.

  Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator.

  By the time the sun began its slow descent toward the western mountains, the outline of Redleaf Prefecture appeared on the horizon.

  Li Yuan had just finished explaining a minor variation of Qi masking to Rou Lin when he felt the subtle change in the ship's speed. He looked up ahead instinctively and noticed that they had begun to slow down.

  Looking down, he noticed the terrain below had grown familiar. Patchwork farmland, winding irrigation canals, low forested hills he remembered from childhood hunting trips.

  They were home.

  Or at least they were about to reach home, until the ship turned abruptly and started flying off in another direction. Toward South, instead of East where his Li Clan's territory lay. Li Yuan frowned, as he had earlier pointed out the location of his clan on a map to the Snow Peak elder. So why was she moving South?

  It took him a moment to guess where she might be going. As there was only one place of importance in the Southern quarter of the Prefecture.

  The Redleaf City. The crown of the Redleaf Prefecture.

  It was the largest city in the entire Prefecture, housing about half a million people within its giant walls. It was also the administrative district. The place from where the Local Magistrate oversaw the Prefecture on behalf of the Empire.

  That knowledge however, didn't help him understand why they were going there.

  He stepped forward slightly. "Senior," he called respectfully, "may I ask why we are heading toward Redleaf City?"

  The Snow Peak elder did not turn.

  For a long moment, there was only the steady hum of the formation and the distant rush of air against invisible barriers. Just as Li Yuan began to suspect she would ignore him entirely, she spoke.

  "A Golden Core cultivator," she said calmly, "is a powerhouse in a place like this. Someone who could disrupt the entire balance of power with her or his mere presence."

  She adjusted the ship's angle with minute precision as a city appeared in the horizon, growing rapidly with each passing second.

  "My arrival will not go unnoticed." she continued. "It will be as though a mountain has suddenly descended into a pond. The ripples will spread outward regardless of my intent."

  Li Yuan listened carefully.

  "The officials will dispatch spies, the local clans will scramble to determine my purpose, tumours will spread and multiply with each retelling. And eventually, misunderstandings may arise." Her tone remained even, but there was an unmistakable undercurrent of mild disdain. "All of it is unnecessary and could be easily avoided if I just go to the local official and announce my intent."

  "I understand." Li Yuan said.

  "Good that you do. It is common courtesy for a powerful cultivator to announce their arrival to the local authorities to prevent any misunderstandings. One day, you may have to do the same." She said and then softly added. "Unless you are sent on a secret mission, of course."

  He nodded slowly. After all, even the strongest cultivator of the 8th Grade Bai family that ruled the Red Leaf Prefecture was only at the Peak Stage of Foundation Establishment Realm. With the Local magistrate also being at the Late stage of Foundation Establishment Realm.

  In the Nine Peak Sect, there were well over a hundred Golden Core Cultivator, so he hadn't given it much thought. But now he was truly starting to see the power and influence that a Golden Core cultivator holds.

  "I understand," he said again. The elder did not respond this time as they finally arrived atop the Redleaf City. He looked down to get a better view, and saw the people in the city similarly looking up at him. Or more exactly, at the flying ship.

  The outer districts were crowded with tightly packed rooftops. The streets were filled with movement. Merchants selling their wares, labourers carrying heavy items, and carriages seen here and there. Even from this height, he could see it all with great clarity.

  The original Li Yuan had once visited the city as a child and stood slack-jawed before its gates, overwhelmed by the scale and grandeur of it. He had believed there could not possibly be a place larger in the world.

  Now, after having walked the streets of Nine Peak City, after having seen cultivators fly overhead as casually as birds… Redleaf seemed… small. Insignificant.

  The walls were sturdy, but he could not sense any Formation protecting the place. The buildings were orderly, but they were small, or most looked to be in some need of repair. Compared to Nine Peak City's soaring towers and layered formations, this place felt like a rural outpost.And he had no doubt that there were cities in this very empire, that would make him feel the same way regarding the Nine Peak City.

  Perspective was truly a ruthless thing. And in this cultivation world, there was always a higher sky.

  The flying ship slowed as they approached the inner district. People turned their heads up at them, some pointing their fingers. This close to the ground, he could even hear their conversation.

  "Flying treasure…"

  "Who is that?"

  "Which sect?"

  Finally, the ship stopped to a hover in front of a Magistrate castle that he had once considered grand. To be honest, it still looked quite beautiful, giving off that medieval renaissance feeling. But unlike the last time he saw it, this time, it didn't bring any awe in him.

  A moment later, the Snow Peak elder flared out her Golden Core aura, and beneath them, the courtyard erupted into motion. Guards scattered to clear the space, servants rushed to follow orders while the lower officials craned their necks to get a better look at the ship, and at the powerful cultivator who had graced their castle.

  Then, at some unseen signal, the Snow Peak Elder gently guided the vessel downward. The ship descended with deliberate control and settled into the courtyard. The formation light dimmed and then silence fell.

  "Follow." The elder said as she gently descended from a set of stairs that had suddenly extended from the side of the ship.

  Li Yuan did as told and stepped off the deck behind the elder, Rou Lin following close at his side.

  Moments later, the main doors of the administrative hall swung open. And the Prefecture Magistrate himself strode out to greet the Snow Peak elder.

  Li Yuan recognised the Magistrate immediately.

  Back when the Li Clan had been embroiled in a dispute with one of their rival families, the Magistrate had intervened personally to resolve the dispute lest it turn into bloodshed. He remembered the man standing tall beneath the clan hall's lantern light, voice firm, with a stern and commanding expression. The perfect embodiment of imperial authority.

  He remembered feeling so impressed.

  Now—

  Now, the same man hurried across the courtyard with visible eagerness, his posture slightly bent, his expression almost… fawning.

  The magistrate finally reached them and bowed deeply before the Snow Peak elder. The other officials, guards, and servants behind him did the same until every soul in the castle was bowing to the Snow Peak Elder.

  "Honored Senior," The Magistrate said, voice warm and deferential. "Redleaf Prefecture is blessed by your presence. Had we known in advance, proper preparations would have been made."

  Li Yuan watched the transformation with quiet fascination. Once again starting to realise just how much power meant in this world. Of course, he already knew that power mattered greatly in this world. But knowing and seeing with your own two eyes were truly two completely different things.

  The elder regarded the Magistrate for a brief moment before speaking in a soft, melodious voice. "There is no need for excessive ceremony. I have come merely to pass through and will remain within the Li Clan territory for a short time."

  The Magistrate blinked.

  "The Li Clan?" he repeated. Then, His eyes shifted—and finally landed on Li Yuan standing just behind the elder.

  Recognition dawned slowly. Then shock.

  The Magistrate straightened slightly, scrutinising Li Yuan's robes, then Rou Lin's attire, then the flying ship, and finally the elder once more. Connections clicked into place behind his eyes.

  The Li Clan's recent elevation to Eighth Grade. The sudden appearance of a Golden Core escort. A Snow Peak disciple standing casually in his courtyard.

  Li Yuan had no doubt that the Magistrate was coming to some wrong conclusion. But this was not his place to speak, nor did he have any interest in correcting the man, so he remained quiet.

  The Magistrate's expression changed subtly. The fawning warmth did not disappear… but now, there was a certain calculation behind it.

  "I see," he said slowly, bowing once more to the elder. "Then this official shall not delay Senior's journey. Redleaf Prefecture welcomes your stay. If you need anything, then you only need send the word."

  The elder inclined her head faintly. Nothing more.

  Before the Magistrate could continue, a sharp, trembling voice rang out from behind the gathering crowd.

  "Yuan'er!"

  The sound pierced through the formal tension like a blade. And Li Yuan froze at the distinctly familiar voice, his heart clenching in recognition.

  The crowd parted as a woman rushed forward, Her eyes were teary as she saw him standing there. She did not hesitate as she ran over and threw her arms around him. The impact forced the breath out of his lungs, but he wrapped his arms around her instinctively, burying his face briefly in the familiar scent of home.

  "I'm back, Mom," he said softly.

  —————

  "You've grown thinner." His mother held him at arm's length, sitting on the chair in the guest room they'd been offered by the Magistrate for their reunion.

  His mother pressed her fingers into his shoulders as if measuring whether he had lost weight since the last time she saw him. Her brows furrowed deeply, and her eyes gazed at him with open accusation. "Are they not feeding you properly at the sect?"

  Li Yuan forced himself not to roll his eyes. Of all the things that had happened in the past few minutes… the flying ship descending, the golden core cultivator announcing her intention to stay at the Li clan… this is what she focused on.

  He opened his mouth to reassure her but before he could speak, the door behind them creaked open and another familiar figure entered the room. "You should listen to your mother, Yuan'er." His father said, an amused smile on his lips

  Despite his words, there was no reproach in his tone, only a quiet entertainment at his wife's familiar line of questioning.

  He turned to properly look at his father… and paused as he noticed the differences. Unlike the last time they had met, his father now stood straighter. The slight stoop that had developed over years of managing clan affairs was gone. His complexion also looked healthier, and the faint grey strands that had once marked his temples had vanished entirely.

  Even without extending his senses, Li Yuan already knew. His father had stepped into the Foundation Establishment Realm. He already knew this would happen thanks to the vision in his father's green halo. But seeing it with his own eyes still brought him great satisfaction and joy.

  "I'm eating fine, Mom," Li Yuan said at last, gesturing for his father to take a seat as well. "The sect isn't starving its disciples."

  She gave him a skeptical look but let the matter drop, for now. His father took the seat opposite them, folding his sleeves neatly before resting his hands on his knees.

  For a few moments, the conversation returned to something almost normal. His mother asked about his cultivation, about whether anyone bullied him, about whether he was sleeping enough.

  He answered patiently, trimming away the more dangerous truths. There was no need to mention any of the stuff that the original Li Yuan had suffered in the sect as it would only bring her unnecessary worry. Nor had he any intention of telling her about his own adventures. The numerous ambushes, the assassination, his visit to the Outer Belt or the tournament.

  Eventually, the questions slowed. His father studied him in silence before speaking in a measured tone. "You arrived on a flying ship," he said. "Escorted by a Golden Core senior."

  It wasn't phrased as a question, but he knew that his father was asking for an explanation nonetheless.

  Li Yuan met his father's gaze calmly, having already decided what version of the truth he would share.

  "Ever since I joined the sect, I began studying formations," he said. "It seems I have great talent for it, and for that reason, I'm valued by some of the elders."

  His mother blinked. "Formations?"

  He nodded. "I've already become a Second Tier Formation Master."

  His mother's mouth fell slightly open. And while his father did not react as much, his eyes sharpened as he examined his son's expression, searching for exaggeration or jest. Finding none, he leaned back slowly.

  "Second Tier," his father repeated under his breath.

  He understood their reactions. After all, in the Redleaf Prefecture, a 1st Tier Formation Master was already a respected figure. And a 2nd-Tier Formation Master did not even exist and had to be called from other Prefectures whenever they needed one.

  If word about him being a 2nd-Tier formation master spread out, then the prestige of his family would rise even further.

  "That explains it," his father murmured. "That explains why a Golden Core senior would personally escort you."

  Li Yuan offered neither confirmation nor denial. In a sense, it wasn't even a lie, as the main reason the Snow Peak elder came over was because of Nascent Soul Elder Wu Yuechan's interest in his Formation talent.

  After a brief pause, he finally asked what had been in his mind ever since he saw his mother. "Why are you here?" he asked. "In the Magistrate's compound."

  His father's expression grew serious at once. The lightness drained from his features, replaced by a grim expression.

  "We came to request assistance," his father said.

  Li Yuan felt his posture straighten slightly. "Regarding?"

  "The empire has fulfilled part of its promise," his father explained. "10 Foundation Establishment Pills will be delivered in stages. And 5 of our low-grade Spirit Lakes will be upgraded to mid-grade over the coming years. In addition, we were granted new territory. Large enough to serve as the base for a new Prefecture."

  "Oh. Which territory?" Li Yuan asked, suspicion forming in his mind.

  "To the Land southwest of the prefecture. The Ashen Ridge Mountain Range."

  The name stirred faint memories. He remembered that it was a rugged stretch of land filled with large mountains.

  "It is not fertile land," his father continued, "but it is rich in ore deposits and hidden resource sites. If properly secured, it would truly solidify our standing as an Eighth Grade family."

  "That sounds like a great opportunity for our clan," Li Yuan said carefully. "So what's the complication?"

  His father's jaw tightened. "The land was taken from the Southern Barbarian tribes centuries ago. And those tribes never fully retreated. Raids are a common occurrence, an supply routes are often harassed." He paused briefly before continuing. "In fact, the last 8th Grade Family assigned to that mountain range suffered such great losses against the barbarian tribes, that in the next Beast Horde attack, they couldn't defend themselves and were completely wiped out."

  His mother's fingers tightened around the edge of her sleeve and his father continued.

  "To this day, many of those mountains are home to numerous spirit beasts." His father said. "From our latest reconnaissance, we learned that the mountain range is currently being ruled by two Mid-stage 2nd Grade Beasts, and over a dozen Early-stage 2nd Grade beasts."

  Li Yuan processed the information quickly. Two Mid-Stage and a dozen Early-Stage 2nd Grade beasts. That kind of strength was not something that a 9th grade family could contend against.

  In fact, even if his family gained 10 new Foundation Establishment cultivators, they still wouldn't stand a chance in a direct confrontation against those Spirit Beasts.

  Even if they fought indirectly, using traps and other such methods to take out the spirit beasts in small groups, they would still sustain great damage and likely lose more than a few of the new Foundation Establishment cultivators.

  "I assume that the clan also sent people to the Bai Family?" He asked, referring to the ruling 8th Grade Clan of the Redleaf Prefecture.

  "We did. Your uncle, the clan head, went personally to ask for their aid. But the Bai family is currently mired in internal succession disputes and they refused any involvement."

  "What of the Magistrate?" He asked. "Will he help?"

  "He is willing to assist," his father replied grimly, "but only against one of the Mid-Stage Second Grade beasts. And in return, he demands over half of the mineral profits from those mountains for the next 30 years."

  Li Yuan's eyes narrowed at those words. Asking for that much… that Magistrate was truly shameless. Wasn't this just a method to leave the Li clan weakened and in deep debt.

  After all, even if his family successfully dealt with those spirit beasts, it'll just be the beginning of their troubles. They would still have to invest a massive amount of time, manpower, wealth and resources to set themselves up in those mountains. And it'll be many years before their investments starts bringing them any profit.

  Giving half of that to the Magister… would the Li clan even have anything left for themselves by the end.

  'Still… this problem…' He thought, leaning back slowly with an odd expression on his face. 'Isn't this too easy for me to solve?'

  To his family, this seemed like an insurmountable hurdle. A crisis large enough that they had to go to others and beg for their aid. But to him…

  To him, this was just a matter of sneaking into that mountain range, setting a few Formations, and then casually dealing with those spirit beasts one by one.

  And he was not even a Foundation Establishment cultivator.

  Once again, he was starting to understand the vast gulf of strength that existed between an ordinary cultivator and someone with a cheat ability like him.

  After a long moment of silence, he finally spoke up.

  "Don't worry," he said calmly. "Consider the matter of the spirit beasts resolved."

  Both his parents looked at him and hope ignited in their eyes at once. His father leaned forward slightly. "The Golden Core senior—will she truly assist us?"

  He blinked. Why the heck were they suddenly talking about the Snow Peak elder?

  It took him a moment to realise why. After all, from his parents' perspective, only the Golden Core cultivator who had escorted him would be capable of wiping out those spirit beasts with ease.

  Li Yuan nodded once, neither confirming nor denying the specifics. He had no intention of revealing that he planned to deal with the beasts himself. There was no need to worry them with that information. For now, it was enough that they believed the Snow Peak Elder's presence meant security.

  Relief washed over them visibly. His mother covered her mouth, tears gathering in her eyes. While his father's shoulders, which had remained tense throughout the conversation, finally relaxed.

  "Yuan'er… you are truly the greatest blessing our family has received," his father said quietly.

  His mother pulled him into another tight embrace, murmuring through her tears that heaven had not abandoned the Li Clan.

  '…you're being too dramatic mom.' He thought as he rolled his eyes inwardly but he still hugged her back as his gaze drifted toward the southwest direction, toward the distant mountains in the horizon.

  Ashen Ridge Mountain Range.

  'Hmm… I might have to borrow the elder's Flying ship.'