Volume 7, Chapter 375 – I’m Here to Be an Elder

Qi Huang awoke from her dream, the storm of emotions in her heart refusing to settle for a long time. She was overjoyed by Lu Yao’s triumphant rise, but even more astonished by her overwhelming strength, tearing through the heavens with her bare hands. Such power was likely something only a legendary immortal could achieve.

Of course, what shocked Qi Huang the most was that crimson mark. It turned out to be dried blood from Lu Yao’s tears. But the real question was, was that world even real? Separated by time and space, how could it appear on the face of her mother?

Qi Huang couldn’t make sense of it no matter how hard she tried. Her head ached from the effort, so she decided to share what she had seen with her family, hoping they could help her figure it out.

Thus, during mealtime, Qi Huang recounted the strange visions she had witnessed in her dreams. To prevent Cheng Ling and those other feminized souls from overhearing, she had already sealed the Window of the Heart and instructed Cheng Hongling to do the same.

“A dream within a dream? Something so bizarre actually exists?”

Jiang Linian was the first to exclaim in astonishment.

“Strictly speaking, it wasn’t a dream within a dream. I was seeing Cheng Ling’s memories, so Lu Yao’s experiences were merely part of her dream.”

Qi Huang corrected her, though her expression was uncertain as she added, “But I suspect it wasn’t just Cheng Ling dreaming either. It felt too real, just like when I see her memories. Maybe those were Lu Yao’s memories, but for some reason, Cheng Ling caught glimpses of them.”

“This is too complicated!”

Jiang Linian’s delicate willow-leaf brows furrowed slightly.

“It’s not that complicated. Simply put, Little Huang saw Cheng Ling’s memories, and Cheng Ling saw Lu Yao’s memories. So, indirectly, Little Huang saw Lu Yao’s memories.”

Cheng Yuan summarized it plainly.

“That makes sense now.”

Jiang Linian’s frown gradually eased.

“There’s one more thing, the blood-tear mark on Lu Yao’s face was exactly the same as the one on Mother’s and yours. That’s why I don’t think it was just a simple dream.”

Qi Huang added further.

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“So, what you’re saying is… Lu Yao truly exists? And the place she’s in isn’t our cultivation world?”

Cheng Hongling, who had been listening quietly, suddenly spoke up with a serious tone.

“I can’t say for certain, but if that world is real, then it definitely isn’t the cultivation world. The arrangement of stars in the sky was completely different from ours, and there were no cultivators there. The people obeyed the heavens unconditionally, no one dared to defy the will of the heaven.”

Qi Huang hesitated but ultimately chose to remain cautious with her words.

“Mother, do you really have no idea where this crimson mark comes from?”

Cheng Hongling turned to Jiang Linian.

“I’ve told you before. Just like you, I only developed this mark after I turned ten. And as an orphan, I never had the chance to ask my elders about it. How would I know its origins?”

Jiang Linian shook her head helplessly.

“This is just too strange.”

Cheng Hongling immediately sensed the baffling inconsistency. “If these memories are inherited through the crimson mark, then why have neither Mother nor I ever dreamed of anything like this? Yet Cheng Ling and Qi Huang both saw these bizarre memories?”

Jiang Linian froze, then fell into deep thought.

Qi Huang also realized the oddity belatedly, but she had no leads to follow.

“Actually, what worries me more is Little Huang. If the crimson mark appears at a set time, does that mean she’ll develop it on her face someday too?”

Cheng Yuan suddenly interjected.

Jiang Linian and Cheng Hongling’s expressions shifted. After all, what woman didn’t care about her appearance?

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“It’s fine! I don’t rely on my face to get by!”

Qi Huang replied breezily. Her current beautiful appearance had been forced upon her, bringing nothing but trouble. If given the choice, she would have preferred a plainer, more low-key face.

“Don’t worry. Aren’t you in the Divine Realm? You can transfer injuries and ailments to your doppelgängers. If the mark really appears, just shunt it onto one of them.”

Cheng Hongling had a sudden brainstorm.

“Let’s not. Doppelgängers are people too, they have feelings.”

Qi Huang hesitated.

“Only the ones with souls will feel pain. The soulless ones won’t. For example, those female souls in your Sea of Consciousness that Cheng Ling assimilated, they’re soulless. Perfect for teaching a lesson.”

Cheng Hongling said decisively.

“You… have a point.”

Qi Huang had an epiphany. Those backstabbing traitors really did deserve some punishment.

Perhaps due to Soul Resonance, Huang Tian, one of the souls within Qi Huang’s consciousness, shivered. Having suffered repeated persecution, she was now like a startled bird, trembling at the slightest provocation.

“That woman must be plotting to torment me again…”

Huang Tian hugged her arms, her soul quivering in fear.

After a long discussion that yielded no answers, Qi Huang and her family had no choice but to drop the matter. Still, she wasn’t too worried. If she could continue seeing Cheng Ling’s memories, the truth would eventually come to light.

Of course, if she couldn’t, or if the visions remained incomplete, that was another story.

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The Longchang Sect was a prefecture-level sect located in Yongning Prefecture’s Longchang County. Due to its remote location, its strength wasn’t much greater than the Honghua Sect’s. The sect leader’s cultivation had only reached the First Layer of Incarnation Realm, inferior even to Cheng Hongling, a sixteen or seventeen-year-old prodigy.

But no matter how small, a sect was still a sect.

Every spring, when the sect opened its doors to recruit new disciples, tens of thousands of people would flock from all directions to take the entrance test. This placed immense pressure on the disciples guarding the gates. After all, a sect’s grounds weren’t just open to any stray dog or cat. Every individual’s identity had to be carefully verified.

Because of this, an endless line had already formed outside the Longchang Sect’s gates, stretching so far that the end wasn’t even visible. Among the crowd were not only hopeful applicants but even permanent residents of the sect.

“Can’t you speed things up? I’ve been waiting for an hour already. Forget the test, I haven’t even stepped inside the gates!”

“One hour and you’re complaining? I’ve been here since before dawn, two hours and counting!”

“Ugh… I should’ve brought snacks. At this rate, I’ll starve before I even get tested!”

“You think you have it bad? Because of you applicants, even we Longchang Sect residents have to queue up. What rotten luck!”

“Exactly! We paid good money to settle here. Why should we suffer like this?”

The crowd grumbled incessantly. Though they all knew better than to offend a sect, their patience had long since worn thin.

“Shut your mouths! If you don’t like waiting, get lost! Nobody’s forcing you to come to Longchang Sect!”

“Yeah, if you can’t handle it, go to the Honghua Sect next door. They don’t make you queue, and their standards are low, you can waltz in whenever you want!”

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The gatekeeping disciples barked back, and the crowd immediately fell silent, not daring to retort.

Just then, a tall woman completely ignored the rules and strode past the line, heading straight for the gates, clearly intending to cut in.

She appeared to be in her late twenties, with delicate yet striking features. Her facial contours were sharper than most women’s, lending her an air of dignified elegance. Though tall, her figure was voluptuous in all the right places. The snowy-white cross-collared ruqun she wore did little to hide her curves, and the occasional glimpse of her long, shapely legs as she walked added a subtle allure.

The men in line were utterly entranced, completely overlooking the fact that she was shamelessly skipping the queue.

“What do you think you’re doing? Don’t you know how to queue? Have some decency!”

A woman protested, but her voice was too weak to snap the men out of their daze.

The tall woman paid no heed and walked right up to the gates.

“Here for the test? Get to the back of the line!”

The sect disciples, accustomed to seeing beauties, quickly snapped out of their daze. One of them immediately berated her.

“What’s the point of queuing? At her age, even if she can cultivate, it’s too late. If she wants into Longchang Sect, she’ll have to find… other methods.”

Another disciple leered suggestively.

“I am here for a test, but not to become a disciple. I’m here to be an elder.”

The woman’s red lips parted as she spoke.

“An elder? Hahaha—!”

The four gatekeeping disciples exchanged glances before bursting into uproarious laughter.