The three Town‑Sect Heavenly Kings struggled to break out of the Azure Firmament Thunder Ring, only to see Quinn Shepherd’s figure flashing again and again, growing smaller as he sped away, the distance between them widening.
All three sighed.
"If I’d known this mission would be so difficult, I’d never have accepted it…"
Heavenly King Lu wiped the soot from his face and muttered, "This generation’s Holy Cult Master is just too unpredictable."
The other two elders felt much the same. Heavenly King Shi said, "At least it’s finally over. The Holy Cult Master is still young, but he’s already showing his brilliance—he’s a blessing to our Holy Cult. Now that this is settled, we should investigate Qian Heavenly King’s situation."
Heavenly King Lu and Heavenly King Yu grew solemn, replying, "Exactly—we need to find out who’s targeting our Holy Cult!"
Heavenly King Shi’s expression turned grave. "What worries me most isn’t that—it’s whether our cult’s teleportation flags might be leaked. These are troubled times… Look below, that looks like Yong Province!"
"Yong Province? Has our sacred ground drifted over Yong Province’s skies?"
Heavenly King Yu’s heart trembled slightly. He exhaled and said, "Yong Province is in revolt—the imperial clan has rebelled, and the momentum is strong. If the Holy Cult Master lands in Yong Province, I fear…"
Sacred Descent Mountain, hidden within the Azure Firmament Thunder Ring, hung high beyond the sky. This sacred ground was never truly still—it was always moving. On Sacred Descent Mountain there’s a place called Abyss‑View; standing there and looking into the depths, you could see the scenery directly below, even the ants on the ground were clear as day.
But this time, in their haste, none of them had checked Abyss‑View, so when the sacred ground drifted over Yong Province, Quinn Shepherd slipped out of the sacred ground.
"Hopefully the Holy Cult Master didn’t land right in the middle of the battlefield," Heavenly King Lu murmured.
Quinn Shepherd plummeted from the sky. Lina the Spirit Fox summoned demon winds, and Quinn walked upon the wind. Before long, he finally set foot on solid ground. He’d spent most of his yuanqi, but at least he was safe.
"It’s been ages since I went to the Imperial Academy. I’m the first Imperial Scholar, the emperor even gave me a post, but I’ve only attended one lecture so far."
He looked around and had Lina fetch the Everpeace geography map from his pack. Quinn compared the mountains, searching for matching terrain on the map.
"It’s Yong Province. Still a ways from the city, though."
Just then, he saw a ship drifting through the sky. Quinn’s heart stirred; he immediately activated Stealing‑Heavens Leg Art and raced along the foothills to chase the flying barge.
That flying barge bore a merchant caravan’s banner—a ship for both trade and passengers. Even in these chaotic times, merchant and passenger ships were still common; even in rebel zones, vessels came and went.
Quinn ran faster and faster, suddenly stepping onto the air itself—he shot upward and sprinted through the sky as if running on solid ground. In just a few breaths, he caught up with the barge and, with a flicker, landed aboard.
Thud, thud, thud!
The sound of swords being drawn rang out. No sooner had he landed on the deck than dozens of flying swords were leveled at his throat, bristling before and behind him.
"Easy, everyone—I just want a ride," Quinn Shepherd quickly raised his hands, speaking with careful caution.
There were dozens of people on the deck—most looked like merchants, with a few hired spell-artists among them, and several officials. The ones holding swords to his throat were those officials and hired cultivators.
"Where you headed, kid?" The boatmaster strode over, bare-chested and covered in tattoos, giving Quinn a once-over with a look of surprise.
Quinn asked, "Is this boat heading for the capital?"
The boatmaster nodded. "That's right, to the capital. Fare's a hundred Dafeng coins."
Quinn was startled. "That steep? It was only ten Dafeng coins from Jiangling to the capital—how'd it jump tenfold overnight?"
"Times are rough—there's fighting every day, nowhere is safe. Of course the fare's gone up. Heh, ten times is already cheap. This is work where your head's tied to your belt—gotta pay more for risking our necks."
Quinn nodded in agreement.
If he tried to walk to the capital, the land was overrun by war and chaos—he'd need over ten days to get there. Using Stealing-Heavens Leg Art burned through his cultivation too fast; he couldn't run for long before exhausting his qi. Taking a boat was simply easier.
"The world’s a mess. I hear even Linzhou’s Qiu Dieyi has turned traitor."
Quinn paid the fare, overhearing the merchants chatting. An elderly gentleman said, "Qiu Dieyi is no ordinary figure—before she joined the court, she was the Grand Palace Mistress of the Palace of Parting Affection, her cultivation earth-shaking. That sect is massive, with countless disciples, and many serve as generals in the border armies. Now that their mistress has rebelled—heh, the world’s even more chaotic."
"Palace of Parting Affection was the first great sect founded by women—its strength’s unmatched, not much weaker than the Three Sacred Grounds. Most of the female generals in court hail from there."
"Sanqi Fortress has rebelled too. Back then, it was favored by the Sacred Throne—Consort Che came from Sanqi Fortress, said to be the granddaughter of Che Zhengli, one of the 'Three Wonders!' Now that Sanqi Fortress has turned, Consort Che was thrown into the Cold Palace on the spot."
"Why are so many sects rebelling?"
"Don’t you know? Three months ago, the Dao Gate’s Dao-Heir blocked the Imperial Academy gates, and the Imperial Preceptor came to lecture on swordplay. That’s when people noticed the Preceptor’s wounds had festered—he tried to mask the stench with perfume, but it still seeped through."
"At first, some sects doubted the rumors. But then another incident happened—the Dragon-Tamer Sect Master snuck into the Preceptor’s mansion at night, fought him, and actually escaped alive! The Dragon-Tamer isn’t top-tier, just a cult-level expert with a serpent-turned-dragon, but the Preceptor couldn’t even subdue him. That shows how bad his injuries really are."
"Shh, quiet—the officials are watching."
...
Quinn’s mind stirred, recalling the scene at the Imperial Academy when the Preceptor lectured on swordplay. The man did look unwell, but Quinn, skilled in medicine and familiar with cosmetics from shopping with Granny Sue, was sure the Preceptor’s flushed face wasn’t sickness—it was rouge.