The white dragon soared through clouds and mist, heading toward Dao Gate.
Under the meticulous care of Dao Lord Lucas Lin, Sterling Xiao finally regained consciousness. Dao Lord Lucas Lin smiled and said, "It's good that you're alright, Senior Brother Xiao. Treating you cost a fortune in spirit pills and medicine—two thousand Everpeace Coins in total."
Sterling Xiao looked a bit dispirited and said, "Two thousand Everpeace Coins? I won't owe you, don't worry. I have plenty of skills—I'll pay you back as soon as I earn the money."
Dao Lord Lucas Lin chuckled, "If you don't have the money, Senior Brother Xiao, you can teach at Dao Gate and pay it off slowly."
Sterling Xiao stretched his limbs and probed, "If I teach at Dao Gate, what's the monthly salary?"
Thirty Everpeace Coins per month.
Dao Lord Lucas Lin kindly said, "That's already the rate for a top Imperial Supervisor. Regular Dao Gate instructors only get fifteen Everpeace Coins a month. You're skilled enough to earn thirty."
Sterling Xiao was startled, staring at him and rasping, "Only thirty a month? If I don't eat or spend a thing, I'd still have to work for you for five and a half years to pay off this debt?"
Dao Lord Lucas Lin felt a bit guilty, thinking, "Back when Cult Master Quinn Shepherd patched up Xu Shenghua after injuring him, he did it without batting an eye. My own shamelessness isn't quite up to that level—I'm tempted to raise Sterling's salary..."
In Azurecloud Heaven, Jaden Jadehall finished his arrangements, and Azurecloud Sect Master immediately reported the Heavenly Court envoy attack to Heaven, quietly awaiting the Heavenly Court's response.
That day, the sky above Azurecloud Heaven split open, and a world-ark sailed in from beyond.
Azurecloud Heaven's connection with the Heavenly Court had never been severed. Even back when the Origin World was sealed and space folded in on itself, leaving only the Great Ruins, Everpeace, and Westlands, Azurecloud Heaven could still communicate with Heaven.
For Azurecloud Heaven and the other realms, what was sealed wasn't the Origin World itself, but regions like Everpeace and the Great Ruins.
Azurecloud Sect Master hurriedly led the crowd to greet the newcomers. At the bow stood several Heavenly Court demigods, watching with faint smiles. Behind them were wolf-headed, human-bodied demigods bearing spears, utterly silent.
Azurecloud Sect Master and the Daoists lowered their heads, not daring to look up.
Raise your heads.
The leading demigod smiled, "Gavin Fu, as Azurecloud Sect Master of Dao Gate, your status is far above mine as a mere constable of the Divine Constable Camp. No need to be so formal."
Azurecloud Sect Master hurriedly replied, "Captain, you're joking. You're a Heavenly Court imperial censor, a high official, while I'm just a minor god from the lower realm. How could I dare be disrespectful? Captain, the envoy attack was Azurecloud Heaven's fault. Everyone here is anxious, fearing Heaven's wrath. Please, when you return, put in a good word for us. I've prepared a small token of appreciation..."
The demigod laughed heartily, disembarked with his entourage, and shook his head. "Heavenly Court law is strict—who dares accept your gifts? That's a capital offense! But if you happen to slip something onto my ship while I'm not looking, I can't help it, can I?"
Azurecloud Sect Master smiled apologetically and signaled the Daoists, who quickly brought treasures aboard the ship.
The demigod walked up to him and waved his hand lightly. Instantly, the wolf-headed, human-bodied demigods vanished, their forms flickering as they appeared at every palace and hall in Azurecloud Heaven, sniffing the ground before disappearing and reappearing elsewhere, always searching.
Azurecloud Sect Master smiled apologetically, "Captain, this is...?"
We're just following protocol, Sect Master Fu. No offense.
The demigod hooked his arm around Fu's, laughing, "Don't call me Captain, that's too formal. These are my disciples, and those howling-sky god clan members are my deputies. I'm Captain Qu He of the Divine Constable Camp—just call me Old Qu."
Suddenly, his Primordial Spirit flew out, towering a thousand zhang high, with over a thousand arms stretching in all directions, palms outward.
In each palm was a giant eye, spinning and shining divine light in all directions, searching for traces.
Captain Qu He still had his arm around the Sect Master, laughing, "Just official business, no offense!"
Azurecloud Sect Master kept smiling, thinking, "I hope Jaden Jadehall did a thorough job..."
Qu He's Primordial Spirit soared, scanning the entire Azurecloud Heaven. The wolf-headed demigods leapt about, searching rapidly, and even seized a few Daoists for harsh interrogation.
After a while, Qu He's Primordial Spirit returned, and the hundred wolf-headed demigods appeared, dragging half-dead Daoists. Each one bowed to Qu He's Primordial Spirit and whispered reports.
Azurecloud Sect Master's expression did not change, but he felt deeply uncertain inside.
Suddenly, Qu He laughed, "Sect Master, sorry for injuring a few of your disciples. But it's just official business—please forgive me."
Azurecloud Sect Master bowed his head, "I wouldn't dare."
"Who discovered the envoy's corpse?" Qu He asked with a smile.
It was my disciple, Jaden Jadehall.
Azurecloud Sect Master summoned Jaden Jadehall. Qu He grabbed him and, in a flash, landed on the ship. "Since that's the case, let Jaden Jadehall take us to the scene of the crime! Sect Master, you may remain—Jaden Jadehall will lead the way."
Azurecloud Sect Master looked uneasy. Jaden Jadehall quickly said, "Sect Master, don't worry. I'll go with the officers and be back soon."
Azurecloud Sect Master forced a smile, "Serve the officers well. Captain, I entrust my disciple to you."
Qu He laughed, and the ship rose, flying out of Azurecloud Heaven.
At Yongjiang Academy, Quinn Shepherd searched for Grandpa Crippled but found nothing, growing increasingly anxious.
If any of the Oldridge Village elders were traveling with the Celestial Venerable, he wouldn't worry—except for Grandpa Crippled.
The villagers of Oldridge Village never take risks—even the bold Butcher isn't one to stir up trouble.
Only Grandpa Crippled makes it his life's mission to steal from every corner of the world, always heading straight for the most dangerous treasures.
Don't worry—Grandpa Crippled never stays interested in anything for more than three days.
Village Chief comforted him, "Grandpa Crippled is just an old monkey who likes to play with corn for a few days and toss it aside. Once he gets bored, he'll bring the Celestial Venerable back to you."
"Let's hope so." Quinn Shepherd's worried look didn't change.
Just then, Blind Grandpa arrived at Yongjiang Academy with the Celestial Venerable. Quinn Shepherd was stunned and rushed to greet them. Blind Grandpa said, "I ran into Grandpa Crippled at Flame Dragon Tomb—he was being chased by a pack of flame dragons. Those dragons scorched a thousand li of red wasteland, and he had nowhere left to hide! Carrying this kid, he couldn't escape, so he handed him off to me and told me to bring him to Yongjiang Academy."
Quinn Shepherd finally relaxed and sized up the Celestial Venerable, who greeted him with a naive, honest smile.
Quinn Shepherd's heart skipped a beat, and he returned the naive smile.
Village Chief and Blind Grandpa cheered in unison, "Grandpa Crippled taught you well!"
Quinn Shepherd flashed eight pearly white teeth in a sunny, innocent grin. The Celestial Venerable also smiled, showing eight bright teeth—so pure and cheerful, no one could possibly feel wary around him.
Suddenly, Quinn Shepherd's fingers twitched, and a pair of underwear appeared in his hand.
At the same time, the Celestial Venerable's arm blurred into a phantom. Quinn Shepherd burst out laughing, triumphant: "I never wear those—they're way too stuffy... Give me back my Taotie pouch!"
The Celestial Venerable clutched a Taotie pouch, which was so heavy he could barely hold it.
Quinn Shepherd scowled, tossed him the underwear, and snatched back the Taotie pouch, lamenting, "Little brother, you're picking up bad habits from that old rogue! See, even though I learned Grandpa Crippled's tricks, I never steal—I always snatch things fair and square. Blind Grandpa, is Grandpa Crippled alright?"
Blind Grandpa shook his head, "Hard to say. Those flame dragons are tough—they guard the tomb of a terrifying god-demon. Grandpa Crippled snuck in with your brother and stole something important, so they chased him. I took a look from afar—any one of those dragons could kill me easily, so I set up a diversion and escaped with this kid. But Grandpa Crippled is slippery—he might just get away."
Quinn Shepherd was still worried. He glanced at Village Chief, who understood and smiled, "I'll go ask the Ancestor for help—let's see what the experts at Flame Dragon Tomb are made of." With that, he hurried off.
Quinn Shepherd relaxed and said to Blind Grandpa, "Blind Grandpa, if you're free, could you come with me to Dao Gate? I haven't studied Everpeace Daoist arts and divine powers in years—I'm falling behind. I'd love for you to teach me a thing or two."
Blind Grandpa couldn't help bragging, "You really are behind. I've spent the last few years studying the formation arts of the Kaihuang era. Just a few months ago, I was exchanging ideas with Master Zixi, one of the Four Heavenly Masters, in the capital. Now my formation skills have reached a whole new level!"
Quinn Shepherd was overjoyed. "Master Zixi's skill with formations really is second to none!"
Blind Grandpa shook his head. "Even Master Zixi has fallen behind. I, along with the Everpeace Grandmaster and other formation experts, have created several new formation patterns—she's never seen them before, and I taught her myself. Still, I learned a lot from her. She's still the best formation master in the world, and I'm not quite on her level."
In recent years, Everpeace has made huge strides in formation arts. Beyond battle arrays, killing arrays, and city defense arrays, all sorts of new formations have emerged—the most fundamental of which is the formation pattern.
Just as swordsmanship has nineteen basic sword forms, formation patterns are the foundation of all formations. Creating new patterns on top of the old is an impressive achievement!
Everpeace boasts many formation masters, each specializing in different areas. At Yongjiang Academy, High Priestess Su Yunzhi is an expert in city defense arrays. General Qin Jian and Qin Baoyue, famed as gods of the army alongside Lord Wei, specialize in battle arrays.
Minister Sikong Weiping oversees Everpeace's waterworks and is a master of formations, skilled at using geography to set arrays.
Though the Everpeace Grandmaster is famed for swordsmanship, his mastery of formations surpasses even the likes of General Qin Jian.
These Everpeace talents inherited the formation arts of the Kaihuang era and then expanded upon them, achieving remarkable success.
Quinn Shepherd called for Dragon Qilin and Water Qilin, bid farewell to Su Yunqing, Yu Yuan, Chu Yu, and the others, then headed to the riverbank to summon Lord Dragonkeeper.
Lord Dragonkeeper shivered at the sight of Blind Grandpa and forced a smile. "Old Master Divine Spear, long time no see."
Blind Grandpa closed his eyes, scanned him with his mind's eye, then opened them. "Why haven't you improved at all? Lord Dragonkeeper, your cultivation is way too low—how will you ever command the Heavenly River? If you don't shape up, someone's going to take you out sooner or later."
Lord Dragonkeeper hesitated, "Little Dragon's just not very bright..."
Blind Grandpa sneered, "You've lectured at Yongjiang Academy and served as High Priest there, so you know the Tianlu Tower holds the Ancestral Dragon Supreme Art. Why haven't you learned it?"
Lord Dragonkeeper glanced at Quinn Shepherd and forced a smile. "The Ancestral Dragon Supreme Art is so powerful—how could I dare steal it?"
Blind Grandpa couldn't help but laugh and shake his head. "You're way too cautious. Your master already made the Ancestral Dragon Supreme Art public—anyone can study it, so why wouldn't you? Back in the day, those little flood dragons who hung off you all learned it. Some of them are stronger than you now! If you don't catch up, you'll be the one riding on their backs, calling 'Mahama-ha!'"
Lord Dragonkeeper was overjoyed, thanked him profusely, and carried them upriver toward Dao Gate.
Quinn Shepherd sat atop Lord Dragonkeeper's head, asking Blind Grandpa about formations. The Celestial Venerable listened too. Blind Grandpa thought he'd need half a year to teach them, but after just six days, he had nothing left to teach.
Blind Grandpa's eyes bulged, and he suddenly lost his temper, pounding Lord Dragonkeeper's head a few times.
Lord Dragonkeeper winced in pain, not knowing what he'd done wrong to anger the old master. Quinn Shepherd told the Celestial Venerable, "Once you master basic formation patterns, learning formations is easy—it's called connecting the dots. But connecting the dots isn't enough, you have to extrapolate and apply what you've learned. Formations aren't just for formations—you can use them in Daoist arts or swordsmanship. Some people just memorize stuff, but that's the dumbest way to learn."
The Celestial Venerable said, "It's not that hard to learn. I've figured out a few formations—brother, can you check if I got them right?"
Blind Grandpa got angry again and thumped Lord Dragonkeeper's head twice more.
Lord Dragonkeeper didn't dare speak, trudged on in silence, and finally reached their destination. Once Quinn Shepherd and the others got off, he breathed a sigh of relief and hurried away into the water.
They were still some distance from Dao Gate's Kunlun territory, so Quinn Shepherd and his companions pressed on for two days. Suddenly, a world-ark stopped overhead, and dozens of wolf-headed, human-bodied creatures leapt down, sniffing around.
Quinn Shepherd froze and told Dragon Qilin to halt. One of the wolf-headed creatures found a corpse, already mauled by beasts and unrecognizable.
"This corpse looks like a demigod I killed... So these creatures must be—"
He looked up at the world-ark and saw a golden-armored deity standing at the bow, hands behind his back, with Jaden Jadehall beside him.
Quinn Shepherd's heart skipped a beat.
One of the wolf-headed creatures leapt over, sniffed Quinn Shepherd and the others, then vanished and reappeared on the ship, whispering to the golden-armored deity.
The golden-armored deity—Qu He—looked over and smiled, asking Jaden Jadehall, "This man once appeared in Azurecloud Heaven. The Howling-Sky clan caught his scent. Do you know him?"