Chapter 946: No Big Deal! (I)

The current overseer of the Divine Ruins Monastery, Bai Wuxiang, had been born in the Divine Ruins Monastery. Apart from sending out his three thousand incarnations, he had seldom ever left the monastery.

While the Divine Ruins Monastery had always accepted outsiders as guardians, none had ever become its overseer. That position was reserved for someone like Bai Wuxiang, someone born and raised in the monastery, a true heir to its lineage. Only such a person could be trusted not to exploit that authority for personal gain.

His wife had shared the same origins. However, her lifespan had been far shorter; she had already passed away.

The couple had a daughter named Bai Yuxian, who had also grown up within the monastery. As the only disciple of true heritage in her generation, she was seen as the most authentic successor and the ideal candidate to inherit the role of monastery overseer.

Bai Yuxian's talent was equally remarkable. But during one mission beyond the monastery, she came face to face with the temptations of the mortal world and met a man who would change everything.

At that time, Jiang Tiankuo had just secured victory in the Assembly of Immortal Sects, earning admiration from all corners. He had returned to the Jiang Family in glory and was officially named heir to the family head. He stood at the peak of his fame, with countless lovers and friends that were part of the Divine Nine and Terrestrial Ten as well as diabolical sects.

Yet, unexpectedly, he fell into the hands of this woman—literally.

At the time, Bai Yuxian had been in the mortal world, collecting scrolls related to the Divine Ruins. During a treasure hunt, she crossed paths with Jiang Tiankuo, and the two ended up clashing over the same item.

Though he was one of the most dazzling elites among the noble families, he was beaten to the ground by this nameless beauty and thoroughly defeated.

For some reason, that beating stirred a feeling he had never experienced before. From that moment on, Jiang Tiankuo began to pursue Bai Yuxian—literally.

He followed her across the land, chasing her wherever she went. And every time she caught him, she gave him another beating. But he never complained. In fact, he seemed to enjoy the chase more and more each time.

And so, they continued like that, chasing and fighting, until ripples gradually began to stir in Bai Yuxian’s heart as well.

Of course, this story only unfolded the way it did because Bai Yuxian looked like a goddess who had descended to the mortal world, with an aura that was both aloof and ethereal. Jiang Tiankuo, for his part, was handsome, charismatic, and extraordinarily talented, carrying the bearing of a banished immortal. That was the only reason things turned out the way they did.

Without that kind of charm, the story would have been completely different. For ordinary people, stalking someone and getting beaten up was definitely not a recommended way to start a romance.

Bai Yuxian remained in the mortal world with Jiang Tiankuo. They held a grand wedding at the Jiang Family, and she became pregnant. Everything seemed to be heading toward a blissful future.

That was, until a monastery guardian appeared.

He arrived at the Jiang Family wielding a powerful enchanted artifact, intending to forcibly take Bai Yuxian away. It would have ended with his retreat, but the Jiang Family head coveted his treasure and secretly led people to ambush and kill the monastery guardian.

That act brought about a great calamity.

The monastery overseer took action personally. The Jiang Family was wiped out overnight. Bai Yuxian was taken back to the Divine Ruins Monastery, where she lost her freedom within the Hall of Heavenly Secrets. The Whale-Riding Immortal sent their daughter to Mount Shu to be cared for, while he journeyed across the nine provinces in search of his wife.

More than twenty years had passed since then, and now, Jiang Yuebai had finally arrived at the Divine Ruins Monastery, standing before the Hall of Heavenly Secrets.

She gazed at the woman beyond the barrier, her eyes brimming with tears.

Bai Yuxian looked at Jiang Yuebai and did not need to say a word. She knew at once that this was her daughter. She stood at the threshold for a moment before taking a decisive step forward.

That single step brought her to Jiang Yuebai’s side, where she pulled her into a tight embrace. Jiang Yuebai was nearly as tall as her mother now, but she still nestled into her mother’s arms like a child.

At last, Jiang Yuebai spoke through her tears, sobbing as she called out, "Mother."

...

Just a few walls away, at the entrance of the Divine Ruins Monastery, the scene was anything but peaceful.

The Whale-Riding Immortal realized that Yang Buwei harbored murderous intent toward him, so he stopped holding back. The man had once helped him, but it now seemed that every act of assistance had been carried out under Bai Yuxian’s coercion. With all pretense stripped away, Yang Buwei was striking to kill.

Yang Buwei wielded a Great Dao known as Mist Concealment, which originated from the Dao of Yin Clouds.

Its counterpart was the Dao of Yang Clouds, from which the Great Dao of Cloud Dominion branched off. That Dao was controlled by Yang Dengxian.

The Great Dao of Cloud Dominion governed celestial phenomena, controlling wind and rain, and symbolized the vitality and abundance of clouds.

In contrast, the Great Dao of Mist Concealment specialized in obscuring forms through mist and altering appearances through fog. It represented the hidden killing intent within the clouds.

The Great Dao of Cloud Dominion was ill-suited for direct combat, while the Great Dao of Mist Concealment proved far more potent in battle.

Yang Buwei’s form flickered before turning into a mass of black mist that surged forward with a roar, engulfing the Whale-Riding Immortal. From within the swirling mist, a single finger shot forth, imbued with immortal qi and as sharp as a legendary blade.

Shhk!

The Whale-Riding Immortal still made no move to dodge. Instead, he raised his left hand and caught the strike directly. His palm was sliced open at once, and golden blood splattered through the air.

The surrounding mist then shifted, transforming into countless blades that shot toward him all at once. Though shaped from mist, each one became unimaginably sharp the moment it touched solid matter.

Every blade made of mist carried the essence of exalted immortal qi.

Without hesitation, the Whale-Riding Immortal spun on the spot and transformed into a billow of white mist.

Boom!

An explosion rang out from within the black mist. Waves of smoke and fog rippled outward before suddenly scattering. The Whale-Riding Immortal’s white mist surged forth, and when he reappeared in his normal form, he swayed slightly. His robes were torn in many places and stained with fresh blood.

Yang Buwei reappeared and landed lightly as he chuckled. "Heh. You might have copied my mist transformation technique, but you can't copy the method for refining immortal qi. That art was lost to the world long ago. We may be using the same technique, but you're relying on foundational qi, while I’m channeling immortal qi. You were never going to win."

The Whale-Riding Immortal rubbed a smear of blood between his fingers, sensing the faint traces of immortal qi that still lingered within it.

"I see," he said quietly. "This stuff consumes an enormous amount of spiritual qi just to produce a single strand. No wonder the technique stopped being passed down and was eventually lost."

It turned out that the secret behind immortal qi lay in an ancient refinement method. Before the time of Hallowed Li, the more powerful Eminent Ones had all mastered it. At its core, the technique was nothing more than the refined essence of spiritual qi.

However, after the era of Hallowed Li, the world’s cultivation limit was raised to the ninth realm. The Sea of Qi within Eminent Ones expanded at an alarming rate. If eighth and ninth-realm cultivators had been allowed to refine immortal qi freely, the spiritual qi in the mortal world would have been depleted even further. Over time, this could have severely hindered the growth of future generations of cultivators.

For that reason, the method was deliberately erased from the wider world and preserved only within the Divine Ruins Monastery as a secret legacy. It was a powerful technique, but not one that just anyone could use.

Yang Buwei let out a cold laugh.

"You figured it out?" he said, then dissolved into mist and swept across the ground in all directions.

Though the Whale-Riding Immortal immediately used the Great Dao of Distancelessness to blink dozens of zhang away, the mist caught up to him again and trapped him once more. In that moment, he spun on the spot and transformed into white mist again, merging into the surrounding black fog.

Within the black mist, iron steeds and riders armed with sabers and swords manifested again, launching another assault. But this time, they failed to push him out.

Boooom!

A violent roar erupted as black and white mist fused into a thick, swirling gray. From within the dense fog, Yang Buwei’s furious voice echoed, "How is this possible? Why can you—"

Moments later, another thunderous crash rang out.

Two figures fell from the air, one landing heavily atop the other.

The Whale-Riding Immortal pinned Yang Buwei beneath him. With one hand choking his throat, he raised the other and brought it crashing down into his face.

Bam!

That palm strike caved in Yang Buwei’s face, rendering him completely unconscious.

The Whale-Riding Immortal summoned a thunder-chain of Divine Clouds with his spiritual qi. It crackled to life with a sharp buzz, then coiled tightly around Yang Buwei from head to toe.

The Whale-Riding Immortale lifted Yang Buwei up, shook his head, and scoffed, "Great Dao of Mist Concealment? Immortal qi? What's so hard about that?

At first, Yang Buwei’s attacks had indeed posed some trouble. But as the battle progressed, the Whale-Riding Immortal began unraveling the secrets of refining immortal qi. He had even deliberately blocked attacks with his bare hands, refusing to dodge—willingly taking injuries just to deepen his understanding.

Sure enough, it only took moments for him to comprehend the method of refining immortal qi.

In truth, it wasn’t all that difficult.

Yang Buwei had been rather naive to think he could defeat the Whale-Riding Immortal using that technique. He likely assumed the Great Dao of the Water Mirror could only produce inferior imitations, but what he didn’t realize was that once it reached its peak, the Whale-Riding Immortal could absolutely make a counterfeit outclass the original.

Even if I’m just replicating your divine techniques and arts, my cultivation is higher than yours, and I know far more than you do. So, how exactly do you plan on winning?

Hoisting Yang Buwei up, the Whale-Riding Immortal continued forward and soon arrived at the Tower of Heavenly Secrets.