Volume 1, Chapter 158 – Venerable Ji Yun

The white-robed old man lightly cleared his throat twice. He did not reach for the battle standard in Shi Lan’s hands, but turned around instead, his expression unfathomable as he said, “Do you want to know who this old man really is?”

“This junior does not.” Shi Lan shook her head without hesitation.

“Weren’t you curious about this old man’s name before?” The old man was slightly taken aback, sounding surprised.

“Since Senior was unwilling to speak, there must be a difficult reason behind it. This junior is no longer curious.” Shi Lan’s expression was solemn as she spoke, while inwardly she was already turning things over. If this person came right out and said what he wanted, how was she supposed to respond?

She had only known this old man for two days and had no idea about his temperament. If she bluntly refused him and he could not swallow the loss of face, trouble would be hard to avoid.

“This old man’s Daoist title is Ji Yun. I have a bit of a name outside. The world calls me Venerable Ji Yun. You must have heard of me.”

The old man’s tone was calm, but inwardly he sighed. He had not expected that he would still end up having to reveal his identity in the end. Once his name was spoken, this little girl would surely be wild with joy. The matter of taking her as a disciple would then become something perfectly natural, and that would take away a bit of the flavor.

Shi Lan’s expression remained steady, but she was a little conflicted in her heart. The four words “Venerable Ji Yun” were far too unfamiliar. She searched every memory in her mind and could not find the slightest information about any Venerable Ji Yun.

But that could not be said out loud. If she said it straight, and this old man felt his dignity trampled, flew into a rage on the spot and lashed out, would that not be unbearably awkward?

The old man’s divine sense had been watching Shi Lan’s reactions the whole time. Seeing her face remain calm, he was pleased rather than angry.

For Shi Lan to keep joy and anger from showing on her face, to feel delighted in her heart without letting it show, proved her temperament was excellent. That was a good thing.

Even so, Shi Lan’s slightly bland attitude still left Venerable Ji Yun a touch dissatisfied—not with Shi Lan, but with himself. It felt as if his name was not nearly as intimidating as he had imagined.

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“Although not many people know, this old man has another identity,” Venerable Ji Yun said again.

“I ask Senior to speak frankly.” Shi Lan was very patient.

“This old man is the close friend of the Sacred Martial Immortal Sect’s Sect Master Supreme’s… junior martial brother.” Venerable Ji Yun’s expression grew solemn. To have a connection to the Sacred Martial Immortal Sect’s Sect Master Supreme was not something an ordinary Heaven-Man Realm cultivator could accomplish.

Hearing the first half, Shi Lan could no longer maintain the calm on her face. Her gaze instantly grew heavy. Even though she knew little about the Sacred Martial Immortal Sect’s Sect Master Supreme beyond a few scattered words…

That was still a Human Emperor, a being that suppressed an entire Domain, a true giant who stood at the very peak of the Lingyang Realm.

But when Venerable Ji Yun paused, then uttered the second half of his sentence, Shi Lan, after a long time, once again remembered what it felt like to crash and burn.

“Senior’s status… truly is terrifying…”

After a long silence, Shi Lan said slowly.

Seeing Shi Lan finally change her expression, Venerable Ji Yun was at last somewhat satisfied. Hands clasped behind his back, he asked, “Come to think of it, this old man still does not know your name.”

That was, of course, a lie. Venerable Ji Yun had already looked into Shi Lan’s basic information thoroughly the previous night.

“This one is called Shi Lan.” Her reply was a little quieter, and she sighed inwardly, Why is he still not leaving…

“Mountain mists like smoke, hazy where immortals dwell, elusive and unfixed. A good name.” Ji Yun nodded slightly, then closed his eyes and waited.

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After a long, drawn-out silence, when the sun at the horizon was almost completely swallowed by the earth, Ji Yun opened his eyes. A trace of surprise flashed within them. He had already hinted things to this extent. How was it that Shi Lan still showed no reaction at all?

“Shi Lan, your martial strength already surpasses ordinary people by far. But on the path of Dao, you still lack tempering.”

“Senior is correct.” Shi Lan lowered her gaze and calmed her heart.

“To temper the Dao path, if you grope forward alone, setbacks are unavoidable. You need a wise teacher to guide you.”

“Senior is correct.” Shi Lan repeated the same words as before.

……

“Senior is correct.”

By the time Shi Lan said this line yet again, the full moon was already hanging high in the night sky. Venerable Ji Yun finally could not hold out any longer and temporarily gave up.

So be it……

Ji Yun secretly shook his head. There was still a long road ahead. As long as Shi Lan had not left this fortress, there would be plenty of chances. There was no need to rush.

Watching Venerable Ji Yun disappear, Shi Lan looked up at the bright moon overhead and let out a long sigh. Only heaven knew what it felt like to keep pretending to be clueless.

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She made her way back to camp.

The camp was lit bright as day. Even though it was now deep into the night, the soft rasp of sharpening blades had yet to cease in the slightest.

Martial artists in the Body Tempering Realm could not use magical artifacts and could only rely on those mundane pieces of iron that were loudly touted as “hundred-times-refined divine weapons.”

The indulgence of the day before had not dulled anyone’s edge. They had been summoned on this trip to resist the demon race. The two days of rest were over. Tomorrow, after the mustering of troops, they would join the front-line clashes.

From the sheer, terrifying size of this fortress alone, one could more or less imagine the scale of those clashes.

On the battlefield, life and death were left to heaven. All one could do oneself was make every preparation possible so that the hope of living outweighed the chance of dying. That was what everyone thought.

Shi Lan entered her tent and sat cross-legged. Because she was wary of the divine senses sweeping past from time to time, she did not take out the Huashen Pill. Instead, she set up a spirit-gathering formation and, taking advantage of the gaps between those sweeps, absorbed phoenix blood once.

After the Jade Tempering Art stepped into the seventh stage, the recovery speed of her internal organs had increased by more than a little. The side effects of absorbing phoenix blood were much lighter now. After one night of meditation, she could recover seventy to eighty percent.

The spirit marrow at her chest, which had originally contained seemingly bottomless spiritual qi, now showed signs of running dry after constant consumption. Fortunately, spirit marrow would automatically absorb ambient spiritual qi to nourish itself, so it would not collapse.

Given enough time, this piece of spirit marrow could even transform back into a spirit crystal vein. Though that would take several thousand, or even tens of thousands of years.

“Rumble——”

A streak of lightning flashed. Dark clouds gathered thick in the sky, blotting out the moonlight. Not long after, a spring downpour came crashing down.

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The night passed in the blink of an eye.

Shi Lan calmed her qi, which carried a faint scorching heat, then guided the newly increased true qi back into her acupoints. She finished her cultivation, got off her bed, donned her armor, and stepped out of the tent.

Outside, the fewer than three hundred Demon-Suppressing Army soldiers she still had under her command were already mounted on their flood-dragon horses, arrayed in formation and waiting quietly.

All around was silence. The air was thick with a faint dampness and the mist left behind by the spring rain.

Today’s troop review by the Demon-Suppressing Marshal concerned only the Demon-Suppressing Army. Those other martial artists did not need to attend.

At the very front of this group of fewer than three hundred riders stood an empty flood-dragon horse, impatiently pawing at the ground with its hooves.

Without saying a word, Shi Lan swung herself into the saddle, took up the reins, and rode out of the camp.

Outside the camp, a wide stretch of ground had already been cleared. Of the more than ten thousand Demon-Suppressing Army soldiers, eight or nine out of ten were already present.

Not long after Shi Lan and her people found their position and drew their mounts to a halt, everyone had arrived.

The army slowly began to move out. Bai Weiyang walked at the very front of the formation, heading toward the designated location.