"Fei Fei, Look! It's so amazing here. I would never have guessed that it's so large inside, filled with strange plants and animals. Look at that bird, it's huge! It looks golden and is at least a dozen meters long. Uh? Is that a dragon?!" Ning Xin shouted.
Ning Xin had insisted on tagging along once she learned that Xu Rongfei had received the invitation. Xu Rongfei caved in eventually, but regretted her decision as soon as they entered the Green Dragon Grand Array.
Xu Rongfei buried her face in her palm and shook her head helplessly.
Yingzhou Island cracked a smile and said, "Gold Nugget was rescued by Master from the Yingzhou Island, while White Drake is the Array Spirit of the Green Dragon Grand Array. Miss Xu, this way please. Master is waiting for you."
"Yeah."
Xu Rongfei nodded and followed up.
Only the most powerful politicians and businessmen could have been invited to visit the top of the Eastern Mountain, however, even they would be barred from entering the North Qiong Pavilion since that was reserved for Chen Fan's family and friends only. Xu Rongfei noticed Chen Fan and Fang Qiong as soon as she entered the North Qiong Pavilion.
Fang Qiong's sublime beauty made her look like an otherworldly goddess.
Chen Fan stood beside her, long dark hair flowing down to his shoulders, its color and texture contrasting the glint in his eyes. The two looked like a match made in heaven. Xu Rongfei was taken aback by the duo's breathtaking attractiveness.
"Fei Fei, welcome! Come here to see mom."
Wang Xiaoyun waved her hand.
Wang Xiaoyun had met Xu Rongfei in Yan Jin and she pitied the girl after the death of her parents, so she decided to take Xu Rongfei under her wing.
Xu Rongfei moved slowly toward Wang Xiaoyun as she replied coyly, "Mom!"
"Haha."
Wang Xiaoyun's face bloomed like a flower.
She regarded the three girls with joy. An Ya was caring, Fang Qiong was beautiful, and Xu Rongfei was kind and the most lovable.
"If my little sh*t can marry all three of them and give me three grandkids, I will be in heaven!"
Overtaken by excitement, Wang Xiaoyun didn't realize how loud she was. Chen Fan nudged her with an elbow and urged under his breath, "Mom, what are you talking about?"
"Why? Why can't I talk about it?"
Wang Xiaoyun shot a hot glare back at Chen Fan.
Chen Fan shook his head in resignation. The comical exchange made everyone laugh, including the bride.
Once they had finished the tea ceremony, the bride and the groom were to greet the guests. Ye Qincang was also sitting among the guests, he raised a cup of wine when it was his turn to meet Chen Fan.
"Senior, thanks to your battle, China won't see another war for at least fifty years. I drink in your name!"
The United States had been soundly defeated by Chen Fan and lost its seat of power in the world. This shift in the power dynamics had made the United State's rivals—mainly China and Russia—heave a sigh of relief. The United States would be quiet for a while as long as Chen Fan was still alive.
"Please look after my parents after I leave."
Chen Fan emptied the cup and talked to Ye Qincang using Divine Will.
Ye Qincang paused a second and then nodded.
In addition to Ye Qincang, Li Wuchen, Director Xiao, Azure Dragon and Ye Nantian were also invited. Red Sparrow was wearing a black dress that exposed half of her back. She colored her lips in a bold and inviting red, as if ready for a kiss at a moment's notice.
Yu Qin looked at Chen Fan with a great measure of excitement.
"General Chen, you kick a**. You are the true role model of strength and power to all Chinese soldiers, including me."
"You can do anything as long as you put your heart into it. "
Chen Fan smiled.
The last table Chen Fan visited was occupied by his friends, such as Xu Haoxuan, Wu Junjie, Yan Xiaobai, Lin Weiwei and Jiang Tanqiu. The mood was much more complicated at this table than at any other.
"I still can't believe that you are the same person that played soccer and video games with us," Wu Junjie said with a cup of wine in his hand.
"Life is a box of chocolates," Chen Fan replied.
Such it was. If Cangqin the Immortal didn't save him in his past life, he would have never become the North Mystic Celestial Lord; this wedding, and this conversation would have never taken place.
"Couldn't be more true. Let's drink to that!" Xu Haoxuan chimed in. His voice was filled with gratitude and appreciation for what Chen Fan had done for him. Thanks to him, he finally found his place in the Hong family.
Once Chen Fan had drunk with each and every guest, he scanned the crowd and said, "I thank you for coming to our wedding. Please enjoy the meal, me and Xiao Qiong will have to leave you now."
"Master, where are you going? To the honeymoon already?" A'Xiu jested.
"No, I'm going to attend the real wedding ceremony."
Chen Fan grabbed Fang Qiong's hand and strode into the main hall of the North Qiong Pavilion.
"Boom!"
Suddenly, countless golden lights beamed out of the North Qiong Pavilion as a thick cloud moved in to shroud the pavilion. The Pavilion slowly rose to the sky like the moving castle of a sage.
Ten meters, a hundred, a thousand.
The building slowly disappeared into the sky.
This incredible miracle was witnessed by millions of Jin City citizens who lived at the foot of the Eastern Mountain.
"OMG, he really is a sage!"
A guest put down his cup and marveled at the incredible sight while the people around him nodded in agreement.
Wu Junjie and his friends were overtaken by a pang of complicated emotions. They still found it hard to come to terms with reality while Chen Fan was drinking with them earlier in his human form.
However, the flying castle finally gave them a dose of reality.
They finally realized what the name "Chen Beixuan" meant to the world.
"Regardless how hard we work, we'll never be able to catch up with him. He's not a mortal, how are we to compete with an immortal?" Xu Haoxuan murmured.
Lin Weiwei and the other girls remained reticent as their minds grappled with reality.
The North Qiong Pavilion didn't stop ascending until it reached a few thousand meters above the ground.
Fang Qiong looked down from the railing; surprise and excitement were written all over her face. They were above a sea of clouds and above them were bright shiny stars so close to her that she thought she could pick them out of the sky.
Chen Fan stood beside the girl and said softly, "This building is called North Qiong Pavilion, which I named after you. It's not only a building, but also a Dharma Artifact. Once I channel Dharmic powers into the building, I can fly it to anywhere I want."
"I see."
Fang Qiong's face was lit up with glee.
She had told Chen Fan that she liked the feeling of being in the air, but she had never thought that he would make her dream come true, having prepared such a surprise for her.
"Thank you, hubby…" Fang Qiong replied coquettishly like a little kitten.
Fang Qiong's voice nearly melted Chen Fan's heart. Even in his past life, he had never seen Fang Qiong act as coy. He lowered his head and kissed the girl. Fang Qiong closed her eyes, letting tears of joy streak across her cheeks.
The two enjoyed their happiest moment in this otherworldly scenery, between a million stars and a sea of clouds.
Fang Qiong had never felt like this before.
Her worries, fear and concerns were all gone. It was as if she had turned back time, having returned to her innocent childhood when she hung out with Chen Fan all the time.
Fang Qiong pressed her body tight onto Chen Fan's chest and asked, "Xiao Fan, why did you choose me? Sister An, Fei Fei and Jiang Churan were all nice girls, and some of them are even closer to you than I am. Is it because we met when we were little?"
"Have I told you about the story of the North Mystic Celestial Lord and the Zi Qiong Goddess? It's not finished yet, would you like to hear the rest of it?" Chen Fan asked.
"Yeah."
Fang Qiong leaned into Chen Fan's arms while they both sat on the marble steps. She looked up at the starry sky and listened on.
On Chen Fan's thirtieth birthday, he went for a Class Reunion party. While drunk he decided to end his life there and then by jumping off a building. Luckily, he was saved by Cangqin the Immortal cultivator and met Fang Qiong in the Cang Min Realm. They quickly fell in love again and became each other's companions on their journey toward enlightenment.
However, Fang Qiong was killed by Chen Fan's enemy.
Her death was a huge blow to him, but he turned the anger and grief into motivation and swore to reach the final stage of cultivation in order to bring his lover back.
The rest was all history. He became the Celestial Lord in just five hundred years, but fell during the heavenly tribulation and had to relive his teenage years again.
"I see. "
Fang Qiong rose to her feet as a mix of strong and complicated feelings roiled inside of her. She finally understood the source of Chen Fan's power and confidence.
The girl padded Chen Fan's chest and said with compassion in her voice, "It must have been hard for you in your previous life."
The earth was a small planet in the universe but even here the competition was fierce and deadly. Fang Qiong found it hard to imagine the hardships Chen Fan had endured in order to achieve such height in his cultivation.
Chen Fan pulled the girl closer to him and said, "The thought of you always eases my pain. I made many mistakes in my past life; I will make sure I won't make them again."
The two of them leaned against each other for a long time until the girl finally mustered enough courage to break the silence…
"Hubby, let's get inside."
"Alright."
It was a night of blissful consummation.
When Fang Qiong woke up the next day, she noticed that Chen Fan was not beside her. She looked out of the window and saw the sun had risen from the east, the sea of clouds basked under its glorious golden lights.
Chen Fan was standing by the entrance. Sunshine outlined his figure, giving him the appearance of a War God.
That's my man, the one person that I will spend all of my life with. The thought was as sweet as honey. Even as she got out of bed to look for Chen Fan, she noticed danger was lurking.
A large bird-like creature emerged from the eastern sky, hiding its true form in the bright sunlight.
The thing traveled at an incredible speed and arrived at the North Qiong Pavilion in a blink. She finally realized that the creature was a man.
The man was wearing a dragon robe and an emperor's crown with twelve vertical tassels that draped over its front and back. The dragon's robe was covered with mystic symbols that resemble thunder. The man's body was surrounded by a golden conflagration. However, upon closer look, Chen Fan realized that they were not flames, but the glow from golden lightnings that moved about him.
"Chen Beixuan, I have been waiting for you since yesterday. Time for you to die!"
The man opened his mouth and his voice sounded like the rumbling of distant thunder. His energy shared some similar character with that of the Earth Level Deity Leixing, but was much more powerful
Chen Fan narrowed his eyes and murmured to himself, "Earth Level Deity Hanshi?"