Free Web NovelChapter 1107: Holy Mountain Zhao
"You’ve been cultivating here. Have you ever acknowledged someone as your master?" Qin Sang folded the letter and studied Tan Yi'en as he asked.
Tan Yi'en instantly realized what Qin Sang meant. Suppressing his excitement, he answered, "I was guided by my father in the past. Because my aptitude was dull, and I feared that joining another sect without any foundation would get me sent to the battlefield as cannon fodder, I’ve been hiding at Yinshan Stronghold, cultivating on my own..."
"Your talent is not bad. You may yet have a chance to form a core. I happen to lack a capable hand by my side. Would you be willing to follow me?" Qin Sang stood with his hands clasped behind his back, his tone calm.
He had only recently returned to Small Cold Domain and had no one at his side to help with mundane affairs. Since he had already developed the idea of establishing his own force, taking on a few disciples was only natural.
He had been observing Tan Yi'en for some time. The youth’s temperament and talent were both commendable, his background clean and unentangled with any faction. He was someone trustworthy.
Moreover, Tan Yi'en was Tan Hao’s son. If Tan Hao ever returned one day, they could meet directly.
"I could not ask for more!" Overjoyed, Tan Yi'en dropped to his knees and kowtowed. "I, Tan Yi'en, pay respects to Senior Uncle Qin!"
Since Qin Sang had not formally mentioned taking him as a disciple, Tan Yi'en could only address him as Senior Uncle Qin.
Tan Yi'en was not worried about this. Given how my parents had revered him, and with Father as the bridge between us, there's no need to worry that I would be mistreated.
"Rise. I cannot linger long at Yinshan Stronghold. If you still have matters to settle, finish them quickly and come with me," said Qin Sang.
"Yes!" Tan Yi'en was decisive by nature. He quickly tidied his mother’s spirit tablet and other belongings within the cave dwelling, left a letter for his father explaining all that had happened, then sealed the cave and followed Qin Sang away.
Leaving Yinshan Stronghold, Qin Sang led Tan Yi'en westward. Though Tan Yi'en appeared straightforward, he was actually observant and thoughtful. Not knowing where Qin Sang intended to go, he simply followed quietly without asking questions.
Qin Sang was pleased. He occasionally offered him pointers in cultivation, which made Tan Yi'en grateful beyond words.
After a long journey, the two arrived in a land of splendid scenery. Before them stretched boundless mountains and rivers, magnificent and vast, veiled by ever-changing clouds and mist.
Deep within those mountains lay the gate of Taiyi Core Sect! The sect sat at the northwesternmost edge of the righteous faction, bordering Heavenly Demon Hill to the west and the Frozen Plains to the north. When autumn and winter came, it turned into a world of drifting snow and silver frost.
"Wait here. Digest what I’ve taught you. Your cultivation should progress another step." Leaving Tan Yi'en behind, Qin Sang flew alone toward Taiyi Core Sect.
He came to meet Wandering Man. The sect’s gate stood on both sides of a river, surrounded by lakes glittering like scattered stars and rows of peaks.
After the great war in the immortal cultivation world, Taiyi Core Sect had not declined but flourished even more. Qin Sang dared not act carelessly here. He put on a bamboo hat, descended at the riverbank, and walked the rest of the way up the mountain.
"Senior, may I ask your Dharma name and what brings you here?" a voice sounded.
He had only gone a few steps when he heard a sonic boom. A streak of light descended from the sky, revealing a young man in the sect’s Daoist robe.
Qin Sang had not concealed his cultivation, so the youth’s tone was respectful.
"My name is Qingfeng. I’ve come to visit an old friend, Daoist Wandering Man of your sect. I would trouble you to announce my visit." Qin Sang stopped and spoke lightly.
"Senior Uncle Wandering Man!" the youth exclaimed, clearly recognizing the name.
Qin Sang’s heart stirred. Judging by the youth’s aura, he had only just reached the Foundation Building Realm, yet he called Wandering Man senior uncle. That meant Wandering Man was not only alive but had already formed his core.
No wonder Qin Sang had not heard his name among the new Spiritual Infant cultivators.
Back then, after resolving his hidden injuries, Wandering Man’s cultivation had progressed with astonishing speed. Qin Sang had once thought he would reach the Spiritual Infant Realm before anyone else.
"Please wait here, Senior..." The youth hurried back toward the mountain and soon returned to report respectfully, "Senior, Senior Uncle Wandering Man is not within the sect. He left many years ago to travel abroad..."
Qin Sang frowned slightly. "Is Li Yufu here, then?"
The youth shook his head again. With no choice, Qin Sang left behind a letter and departed.
Rejoining Tan Yi'en, he turned southward, heading straight toward Yuncang Marshlands.
Along the way, he deliberately changed their route to pass through the lands of Great Sui Kingdom. freeωebnovēl.c૦m
He did not enter the imperial capital. Those he had once known in Great Sui were long dead, their bones turned to dust. Only one stele remained worth remembering.
Night fell. At the foot of Holy Mountain Zhao, Qin Sang stood alone before a stone stele.
Time had been merciless. The nameless stele still stood, but it was mottled and weathered. Qin Sang faced it in silence for a long time.
He looked up at the sky, recalling the bold words he had once spoken before her. Looking back now, how naive and arrogant they had been. Fortunately, he had stumbled his way this far.
"Qi Refining, Foundation Building, Golden Core, and next comes Spiritual Infant..."
Gently brushing the stele with his fingers, Qin Sang murmured, "If I can reach this stage, I suppose that would already make me one of those immortals spoken of by mortals. But that should not be my end. Otherwise, how could I ever fulfill those words I once swore to you?"
He poured a cup of wine before the grave. The sound of insects around him gradually faded.
From the foot of the mountain came sudden commotion. Soon after, Tan Yi'en hurried over. "Senior Uncle, there is a mortal army fighting below the mountain. Both sides are led by nobles. Among them, I also noticed traces of immortal cultivators. I went to investigate quietly and found that those cultivators are mostly at the Qi Refining Realm, likely rogue cultivators who have joined the mortal conflict..."
"Immortal cultivators?" Qin Sang turned his gaze and sighed. "No wonder I’ve encountered signs of cultivators along the way. Ever since the immortal cultivation world fell into chaos, countless opportunists have surfaced, abandoning cultivation to stir up trouble in the mortal world. It seems like Cunyang Sect has indeed declined, unable even to maintain order within its own borders."
How pitiful! Qin Sang thought.
The empress had once established achievements meant to last a thousand years, yet all was undone in such a short span, destroyed by these cultivators. Great Sui had splintered apart, and disorder now reigned across its lands.
Tan Yi'en nodded. "These rogue cultivators have little hope of advancing further on the path of immortality, and their lifespans are limited. Worldly wealth and power hold great allure for them. My father once said that in the past, the righteous sects restricted cultivators from meddling in mortal affairs. But now, under the growing pressure of Sin Abyss, they can barely protect their own lands, let alone others."
"In that case, mortals have far easier access to cultivators than before." Qin Sang thought back to how difficult it had been in his youth to seek the Dao and could not help feeling wistful.
After a moment’s thought, he said, "Go down and investigate. Find out who leads both armies and what status they hold. Bring those rogue cultivators back as well." frёewebnoѵēl.com
"Yes!" Tan Yi'en left immediately after receiving the order.
Qin Sang stood before the nameless stele for a moment, then retrieved several spiritual materials and talismans from the Thousand-Jin Ring.
As midnight approached, a dense mist rose around the stele out of nowhere. The mist gathered, the ground trembled, and the stele sank into the earth before both mist and stele vanished completely, leaving the mountainside empty and still.
Qin Sang could not stay to guard Holy Mountain Zhao, so he used this method to conceal the empress’s grave, lest it be destroyed amid the chaos of war.
One day, if he were to become immortal, he hoped to look upon it again from the heavens.
