Chapter 1088: Clan Leader Jing Versus The Multiverse Emperor

Ye Guan had no idea that two people had been watching him from the shadows.

One of them was Qi Cang, and he had actually been waiting for Ye Guan to come out from the Sword Tower. However, he was surprised to see that Ye Guan hadn't exited from the tower's main gate but had arrived from elsewhere.

While he wasn't sure if Ye Guan was the mysterious record-breaker that everyone was talking about, he was certain that the young man had passed some floors. After all, those who had failed would be expelled from the tower outright. Furthermore, Ye Guan was now a Xiantian Realm expert.

Qi Cang sized up Ye Guan for a moment and murmured to himself, "I wonder if he's that mysterious challenger..."

Shaking his head, he turned and left. However, he had decided to observe Ye Guan from behind the scenes.

The other person watching him was the elder guarding the Sword Tower.

He had also been waiting for Ye Guan to come out. He did not expect Ye Guan to reappear from a completely different location. After a moment of silence, he decided that he needed to report the strange incident, just in case the young man was the mysterious record-breaker.

Soon, the elderly man arrived at the Sect Master's pavilion, where a sword-wielding attendant stopped him.

The elderly man bowed deeply and said, "I have something to report to the Sect Master regarding today's mysterious challenger."

"Please wait," said the attendant with a nod. Then, she turned and went inside. After a short while, she returned to the elderly guard and said, "Come in."

𝑓𝘳𝘦𝑒𝑤𝑒𝘣𝘯ℴ𝘷𝘦𝓁.𝑐𝑜𝑚

When the elderly guard entered the pavilion, he was greeted by two ladies.

One of them wore a white dress and held a sword, and her expression was as cold as ice. If Ye Guan were here, he would be astonished, as she was the lady he had encountered earlier that day.

A lady with jet-black hair elegantly pinned up with a simple wooden hairpin was sitting next to the ice-cold lady. She was clad in a modest cloud-patterned robe, and her face was free of makeup. Overall, she exuded a serene and refined air.

She was none other than Yue Qi, the Sect Master of Qingzhou's Sword Sect.

When the Main Sword Sect announced its plan to establish a branch in Qingzhou, countless swordsmen vied for the position of Sect Master in this renowned region.

Qingzhou, after all, was a place known for producing extraordinary talent, and—along with Nanzhou—it was one of the most powerful regions in Wanzhou.

The Sect Master of Qingzhou's Sword Sect would surely have access to an immense pool of resources. They would also have a ton of influence, as the future swordsmen of Qingzhou would be their disciples.

Power, connections, and resources—all of these would be within their reach.

Many powerful clans and sects had eagerly pursued this position. In fact, the matter had even stirred controversy within the Main Guanxuan Academy.

When Yue Qi stepped forward as a candidate for the position, however, the Guanxuan Committee approved her appointment immediately. This swift decision left many sects and clans stunned.

Of course, their reaction was understandable, as only a handful of the oldest clans and sects were privy to the mystery behind Yue Qi's identity.

After listening to the elderly guard's report, the ice-cold lady beside Yue Qi frowned. The description seemed to match the man she had encountered earlier. Was it him?

Yue Qi instructed, "Keep this matter to yourself."

The elderly guard bowed respectfully and took his leave.

Yue Qi then turned to the ice-cold lady and said, "Let's go and investigate."

With that, the two vanished into thin air.

Ye Guan and Yang Yian were sprawled out on the ground near the Sword Tower.

Yang Yian was fast asleep and was using Ye Guan's arm as a pillow. Ye Guan's eyes were slightly closed. He was breathing evenly, but he wasn't sleeping. He was busy thinking about his next course of action.

The ice-cold lady's face darkened upon seeing Ye Guan. It really was him!

Yue Qi noticed that and turned to the ice-cold lad. "Yu Ning, do you know him?"

Yu Ning glanced at Ye Guan, looking slightly uncomfortable. "We've met once."

Yue Qi studied him for a moment, and her brows furrowed slightly.

Yu Ning asked, "Master, is he hiding his true strength?"

Yue Qi shook her head. "No."

"Should we investigate him?" Yu Ning asked."

Yue Qi replied, "There's no need to. If he harbors no malice, that's good enough."

Then, she turned around and walked away.

Yu Ning glared coldly at Ye Guan before turning around to follow her master.

The next day, Ye Guan and Yian went to find an elder of the Sword Sect.

Ye Guan took out a wooden token and handed it to the elder. He had received tokens upon clearing each floor. Although he had five, he gave the elder the one for the third floor, as he knew that the third-floor token was enough for him to join the inner sect of the Sword Sect.

The elder looked at the wooden token before asking, "Xiantian Realm?"

Ye Guan nodded.

"I get it—playing the fool to catch the tiger, right? I know that trick well!" the elder said. Then, he looked over at Yang Yian and asked, "Is she your sister?"

Ye Guan nodded again."

The elder replied, "Well, even if she is your family, she can't enter the inner sect with you."

"I understand," Ye Guan replied. Then, he took out fifty Pure-grade spiritual crystals and handed them to the elder. "Elder, my little sister and I have been relying on each other since we were young. We've never been separated. I'd appreciate any help you can offer on this matter..."

Without missing a beat, the elder pocketed the fifty spiritual crystals, and a wide grin spread across his face. "I just remembered that the inner sect is recruiting a few attendants to help with everyday tasks.

"As an inner sect disciple, you're allowed two of such attendants. She can be with you as an attendant, but there are many rules in the inner sect. You'll have to guide her carefully."

Ye Guan quickly bowed. "Thank you, Elder!"

The elder smiled and handed Ye Guan a wooden token. "Go ahead and report to the inner sect."

Ye Guan took the token, which symbolized his new status, and, taking Yian's hand, they walked toward the inner sect.

Once alone, the elder glanced at the Pure-grade spiritual crystals in his hand before disappearing from sight.

Soon, he arrived at the Sect Master's pavilion. He respectfully placed the fifty spiritual crystals before Yue Qi and explained what had just happened.

Yue Qi listened and nodded. "Understood."

The outer sect elder bowed respectfully and was about to leave when Yue Qi pointed at the fifty spiritual crystals and said, "They're yours."

The elder's face immediately changed, and he hastily replied, "I wouldn't dare!"

Without another word, he retreated as if he was fleeing. The Sword Sect, from top to bottom, truly respected Yue Qi. When she founded the Qingzhou Sword Sect, many influential clans and sects approached her, hoping she would make concessions and allow their disciples to join them.

Yue Qi's response was nothing short of audacious. She took up her sword and confronted all of them, a bold move that put an end to any attempts from clans or sects trying to meddle with the Qingzhou Sword Sect.

Thanks to her, the Qingzhou Sword Sect had been thriving over the years. Her impact was unparalleled, earning her both reverence and a touch of fear from everyone in the sect.

Beside her, Yu Ning asked, "Master, what do you think he's up to?"

Yue Qi glanced at the pile of spiritual crystals and instantly knew that they were rewards that Little Ai Nine had handed over. After all, she was the one who had proposed the reward system in the tower.

"As long as he holds no malice, then we'll leave him be," Yue Qi said.

Yu Ning pressed, asking, "But what if there is malice?"

Yue Qi replied, "He's not a bad person."

Yu Ning seemed unconvinced. "How do you know?"

"My hunch says so," Yue Qi said, smiling slightly.

***

Ye Guan successfully joined the inner sect. Of course, he had no idea that he had already caught the attention of the Sect Master.

As an inner sect disciple, he had his own courtyard, which had three houses —a main house and two side houses.

Ye Guan was still teaching Yang Yian how to read. Once they were done reading today's book, Ye Guan proceeded to teach her cultivation. To be safe, he didn't teach her the Universe Beholdment Skill, as that cultivation method was too extraordinary.

In addition, it would be strange if she had such a high-level cultivation method.

Instead, he taught her a special cultivation method second only to the Universe Beholdment Skill. With spiritual crystals in hand, Ye Guan discovered that while Yian wasn't particularly gifted in reading, she had a decent aptitude for cultivation. She could grasp certain concepts after just one or two explanations.

In this world, reading was not enough, as cultivation was essential for survival as well. Ye Guan hoped that this girl would develop the ability to protect herself in the future. As for whether Yang Yian would pursue the sword, it all depended on her own.

Once she had her own cultivation base, he would let her decide for herself.

After Yang Yian had fallen asleep, Ye Guan returned to his room. He sat cross-legged on the ground and closed his eyes. Dozens of Pure-grade spiritual crystals were in front of him, and he proceeded to absorb them!

His goal was to raise his cultivation realm because without doing so, he would not be able to travel with his sword, and his means of self-preservation would be quite limited.

After all, dying in his own territory would be incredibly embarrassing.

Ye Guan found it quite interesting that he had to start from scratch. In the past, he could disregard his opponent's cultivation base thanks to the Path Sword, but the Path Sword was no longer in his hands.

However, Ye Guan was not exactly concerned. He liked the fact that he could view cultivation from another perspective, as it allowed him to recognize many issues that he failed to notice in the past.

Ye Guan was taking this seriously, as he knew that he couldn't afford to lose.

If he ended up losing, he would be ashamed of himself.

***

Clan Leader Jing was walking through the void in an unknown expanse of a starry sky somewhere in the Guanxuan Universe Region.

Rumble!

The spacetime in front of her trembled, and a golden spacetime tunnel unfolded before her. An elder dressed in a golden robe emerged slowly from the tunnel. He was Hall Master Yu, one of the twelve Hall Masters of the Temporal Dao Hall.

The twelve Hall Masters were divided into literary and military ones, with the previous Hall Master being a literary one, while Hall Master Yu was a military one, with power far surpassing that of the previous Hall Master that Clan Leader Jing had encountered, Wu Chao.

When Hall Master Yu stepped forward, the spacetime around him distorted, flickering between reality and illusion. In fact, he wasn't in this spacetime at all, and he was also moving against the flow of time.

In simple terms, he and Clan Leader Jing were not in the same spacetime. His power was so great that he had forcibly connected two timelines that weren't supposed to intersect.

Hall Master Yu stared at Clan Leader Jing and said, "For the sake of the Multiverse Emperor, the Temporal Dao Hall must make a move. The Guanxuan Universe must be destroyed, and that boy must die.

"If you obstruct me again, you will also have to die."

It was a simple and straightforward declaration!

Rumble!

A powerful aura engulfed everything in a radius of several million kilometers, and the starry skies around them seemed to boil beneath the indescribable might.

However, Clan Leader Jing remained expressionless.

"Die," she spat coldly before looking away from Hall Master Yu and leaving.

In a distant, peculiar spacetime region, Hall Master Yu sensed something, and his pupils constricted. He clenched his fists tightly and roared, "Barrier!"

As soon as his voice fell, the special spacetime region around him trembled violently, and a myriad strands of temporal power rushed toward him, forming thick defensive walls. However, they erupted into flames, and Hall Master Yu burned along with them.

Hall Master Yu's eyes widened in disbelief. "How is this possible..."

The strands of temporal power were reduced to ashes before being carried away by the wind. The heavens and earth returned to normalcy, and Hall Master Yu seemed to have never existed in the first place.

The next moment, Clan Leader Jing appeared in a starry sky.

Two figures were confronting each other in the distance.

They were the Great Daoist Brush Master and the Multiverse Emperor. Upon seeing Clan Leader Jing, the Great Daoist Brush Master was slightly taken aback. "You..."

Clan Leader Jing ignored the Great Daoist Brush Master and started walking toward the Multiverse Emperor.

"I hear you're pretty strong?" she asked while staring at the Multiverse Emperor.