1567 Seclusion

Ye Futian was filled with emotion as he remembered the first time he had met the House Master of Taixuan and String Emperor.

The first time he had met the House Master of Taixuan, he had played her a song, and then she had brought him to Taixuan Mountain.

He had met String Emperor at String Pavilion, where he had given him a famous guqin and told him he could take anything within String Pavilion.

At that time, he was just a musician, not a disciple of Taixuan Mountain. But the two of them had not cared about who he was. It was just the same now. No matter who he was, as long as he was cultivating at Taixuan Mountain, he was their disciple, and they would not let the Golden Divine Nation hurt him.

A look of surprise came over the faces of the people of Linxiao City. String Emperor and Empress Yan had not even known Ye Futian's true identity. It seemed like he was not Lord Taixuan's secret disciple then.

He was incredibly talented. He had come from the Heavenly Mandate Realm and was probably one of the most powerful cultivators there. Yan Sui seemed to recognize him, and the Renhuangs from the great powers seemed to know a little bit about him as well.

With so much talent, there was no way that he was unknown in the Heavenly Mandate Realm.

How could a casual cultivator be so talented and so powerful?

Now, it seemed like Taixuan Mountain would certainly protect him.

The Renhuangs of the Golden Divine Nation could naturally see this as well. String Emperor and Empress Yan had both shown that if anyone wanted to hurt Ye Futian, they would do their best to make that impossible.

This was their attitude, and it was also Taixuan Mountain's attitude. Both of these disciples of Lord Taixuan were powerful, and they represented the will of Taixuan Mountain.

In the past, the Golden Divine Nation would have needed to worry about the will of Taixuan Mountain. But now things were different. Once Lord Taixuan had broken through to the next level, everything had changed.

Taixuan Mountain's status would never be the same.

"I was a rare opportunity for Lord Taixuan to receive an invitation to a sparring session at the Divine Palace, and for his juniors to take part in the journey to the Land of Proving the Way. He certainly did not want to miss the chance to test himself against others, and to see the great figures among the youth of the Higher Heavens Realm," came the Palace Lord of the Divine Music Palace's voice. "He is a guest in the Divine Palace even as we speak. All of the great forces have people here, so what use is there in disturbing this harmonious atmosphere? Why don't we let the Divine Palace keep some face and end this here?"

The situation had reached a stalemate. No one wanted to act. The Golden Divine Nation was clearly in the wrong here, as Gai Shi Shi had attacked Ye Futian, but they had not succeeded and had instead suffered great losses and been humiliated. Their ultimate technique had even been stolen. It could be said that they had paid a heavy price for what they had done.

If Taixuan Mountain did not protect him, then Ye Futian would die. But Taixuan Mountain was taking such an aggressive stance that if the Renhuangs continued fighting, then Lord Taixuan himself would probably come.

The Golden Divine Nation had to accept this humiliation. Gai Shi Shi had simply not been good enough.

The Palace Lord of the Divine Music Palace was playing the peacemaker. The divine general of the Golden Divine Nation knew that things could not continue like this, and so he looked at Ye Futian and said, "I do not wish to see our ultimate technique in your hands, and I do not wish to see it fall into anyone else hands. Think about this."

Brilliant divine light pierced Ye Futian's eyes, and the divine general's voice carried a hint of threat with it. The divine general continued, "Since the Lord of the Divine Music Palace has spoken, we will end it here. Let's go."

On saying this, he turned and walked away. The cultivators of the Golden Divine Nation glanced at Ye Futian, then turned and followed him. Dazzling golden light flashed in the sky as they all disappeared.

At that moment, the Prince of the Divine Capital of Xiling looked at Ye Futian and said in a cold voice, "I look forward to our next meeting." Then he and his people turned and left as well.

"What a pack of rats," said String Emperor mockingly. He had always borne a grudge against the Divine Capital of Xiling for their surprise attack. At that time, the Master had only punished them lightly and not pursued the matter, but if it had been him, he would not have let it go. He would have taught all of the Divine Capital of Xiling a lesson that they would not soon forget.

There were many people here from all the great powers, and many of them were at the Renhuang level. They looked at Ye Futian. This proud son of heaven who had come from the Heavenly Mandate Realm had entered the Divine Palace. In the future, he would probably become like Huang Zhong.

Empress Yan's aura disappeared, and she walked over to String Emperor's side. "Should we return to the Divine Palace?" she asked, "Or return to Taixuan Mountain?"

"Let's go back to Taixuan Mountain. The Master will naturally return himself at some point," answered String Emperor. Dazzling divine light flashed, and the phoenixes alighted before him. He turned to Ye Futian and said, "We are heading back to Taixuan Mountain."

Ye Futian nodded. "Very well."

Empress Yan turned and looked at Wan Shouyi and the others from Taixuan Mountain. "What are you waiting for?"

They all finally reacted. They all mounted the phoenixes. With a cry, the phoenixes rose into the air and flew away.

All of the cultivators left. The great battle that had just taken place had devastated the area, making them all sigh. This battle had been started because of someone pursuing Ye Futian, but from this, they had all seen the disunity between the great powers. There would certainly be some trouble in the future.

Upon the phoenix's back, Empress Yan looked at Ye Futian with interest. He narrowed his eyes when he saw her looking at him.

"White hair, white clothes, and a noble bearing," she said appreciatively. "You are much more handsome than the stranger you were before."

Ye Futian's face darkened. He looked furtively at String Emperor beside him. He had realized that although Empress Yan was a woman, she was most improper.

Wan Shouyi and the others were embarrassed as well. Fourth Miss was up to her old trick again.

However, Ye Futian was indeed much better looking now than he had been as Shen Jing. His aura was also far more outstanding, and his silvery-white hair made him much more charming and heroic.

"Don't worry. I'll look after you from now on." Empress Yan patted his shoulder. Ye Futian feared that String Emperor was going to hit him.

Heaven only knew what the relationship between those two was. In any case, it was not simple.

"House Master, is Lord Taixuan at the Divine Palace?" asked Ye Futian. He was changing the subject as he had a strong desire to keep living.

"Yes, the Palace Lord of the Divine Palace invited him for a sparring session. Many people have gone to watch, including Renhuangs, from all the great powers. That is why you saw so many Renhuangs there," answered Empress Yan. "Did you really enter the ancestral land in the Divine Palace? The Divine Temple of the Ancestral Land?"

Ye Futian looked at her and then nodded.

"What was in there?" She looked at him in eager anticipation. She seemed very interested in the temple.

"All of the great teachings o the Divine Palace," said Ye Futian.

"That's all?" Ye Futian's answer had clearly not satisfied her curiosity. Of course, the great teachings had been there, but was that all there was?

Why were they so serious about hiding it then? There were so few people who could enter the Divine Temple of the Ancestral Land.

She did not believe that there were no secrets.

Ye Futian felt a bit helpless. "House Master, this..."

He could not be so casual about revealing the Divine Palace's secret.

"Sister," said String Emperor, "it was Ye Futian's luck to be able to enter The Divine Temple of the Ancestral Land, and so he is keeping their secret for him. We should not force him to be dishonorable."

Empress Yan looked at him, then seemed to lose interest, saying, "So boring."

But she did not pursue the matter. She walked over to one side and sat down.

"The Ancestral Temple of the Divine Palace naturally is connected to cultivation." Ye Futian smiled and said no more. He really could not reveal anything more. Even though he wanted to, this was a major secret. The Divine Palace had not prevented him from entering, and so if he gave up their secret so easily, it would be quite dishonorable.

Empress Yan had evidently realized this as well and did not want to make him dishonor himself, so she did not ask anymore.

The phoenixes flew quickly, shooting through the air towards Taixuan Mountain.

...

Within the Divine Palace, the things that had happened in Linxiao City spread quickly. Once Yan Sui returned, he sought out Yi Tianyu.

At that moment, Yi Tianyu was standing before a palace hall. When he heard that Shen Jing was, in fact, Ye Futian, he did not know what to feel.

He had appreciated everything that Shen Jing had done at the Divine Palace. He had been outstandingly talented and very prideful as well.

Although he had not let him keep face, how could he blame him? Who did not have some arrogance in his heart?

And now he knew why.

So that was why he had advanced so quickly. He had reached Nirvana, entered the Ancestral Temple of the Divine Palace, and comprehended the 81 swords.

At that moment, he felt like he was under pressure.

Li Daozi and Gai Shi Shi had both lost to Ye Futian. If he and Ye Futian fought now, what would the outcome be?

For that day would come sooner or later.

"What are you thinking about?" whispered Ye Man beside him.

"I must go into seclusion and continue cultivating," said Yi Tianyu.

Ye Man nodded. "Ah. I will go with you."

"Excellent." Yi Tianyu turned and left. He needed to reach the Renhuang plane more quickly.

...

Once Ye Futian returned to Taixuan Mountain, he continued cultivating at String Pavilion. Although he had caused a major disturbance, as far as he was concerned, nothing had changed. He needed to keep on like before and cultivate without drawing attention to himself.

Now, his identity had been revealed. Although Taixuan Mountain was protecting him, he had offended the Golden Divine Nation, and he needed to reach the Renhuang plane eventually in order to be able to protect himself.

Many of the people on Taixuan Mountain were discussing all that Ye Futian had done. He had quickly become a legendary figure there, and many people went to String Pavilion to visit him. But Yaya, who had come back from the Divine Palace with him, turned them all away. She gave them all the same answer: Ye Futian was cultivating in seclusion.

Everyone was saddened by this, but they realized that it was the right thing for him to do. A man this legendary had the right to be proud.

Lord Taixuan returned to Taixuan Mountain as well, but he did not seek out Ye Futian. He busied himself with his own cultivation as if nothing had happened at the Divine Palace.

Everything went on just as it had before.

Moreover, this time Ye Futian planned to be in seclusion for a long period of time. Yi Tianyu, and even the Heavenly Mandate Dynasty, would soon hear news that he was at Taixuan Mountain. Under this situation, he could not leave the mountain whenever he pleased. So, there was only one thing to do: cultivate.

He planned to forge a body of the Great Path and a soul of the Way for himself. If he could directly become a Renhuang, that would be best. If he couldn't, he wouldn't come out until he couldn't go any farther!