Suzaku Star.
Zhao Country, Hengyue Sect.
Upon the straight, towering cliffs, a classical sect was built into the mountainside, grand and magnificent.
The majestic gate tower was constructed from mysterious black stones that emitted a faint glow, and it was covered with ancient, cryptic runes.
On either side of the gate tower stood pillars reaching into the clouds, their bodies adorned with lifelike cloud dragon carvings, their eyes wide with fury, as if they would break free and soar into the heavens at any moment.
The intricately arranged eaves and upturned corners resembled spiritual birds poised for flight, adding a touch of etherealness amidst the swirling mists.
As one of the few cultivation sects in Zhao Country, Hengyue Sect was currently holding an exchange competition with Xuan Dao Sect, which also served to test the true strength of their sect.
"Our Luo River Gate doesn't have this kind of competition. However, the cultivators here mostly practice slaughter, unlike our Fire Incineration cultivators, who specialize in alchemy, artifact refining, and demon subjugation, each with their own unique paths."
The first to speak was a woman of exquisite beauty.
Her Liu Mei were like smoke, dazzling as spring blossoms, resembling a lotus fairy, soft and graceful, her every word and action revealing a gentle voice.
"Li Muwan, after this competition ends, let's return to Luo River Gate. After all, if the Ancestor knew about this, he would probably blame us for running off and neglecting our cultivation."
The man beside Li Muwan sighed.
"Understood..."
Li Muwan's gaze once again turned towards the distant Hengyue Sect square, her pearly teeth gently biting her lower lip, her star-like eyes revealing a hint of longing.
As Li Muwan's older brother, Li Qiqing had relied on his sister since childhood and knew that she had always held one person in her heart for so many years.
It was said that this person was a prodigy disciple of the Hengyue Sect in Zhao Country, but despite inquiring with many people, no one had ever heard of his name.
Just as Li Qiqing was about to say something else, the sky, which had been as blue as the sea, suddenly became overcast with dark clouds, lightning flashing and thunder rumbling. Bronze-colored heavenly lightning, like dragons and snakes, freely weaved through the clouds, distorting the air in its wake.
The disciples of Hengyue Sect and Xuan Dao Sect gazed in terror at the figure shrouded in red mist in the sky. Even a single glance made them feel as if their souls were being forcibly ripped away.
And in the silent mists, a hundred-meter-long blood-red Flood Dragon freely weaved through the clouds. If one looked closely, they would discover that a young man in a blood-red robe stood atop the Flood Dragon's head.
The young man's face was fair and his stern features were filled with a murderous aura. As a gentle breeze swept past, his long silver-white hair danced in the wind.
"Hengyue Sect, I'm finally back."
The white-haired young man's name was Lin Che. He was a prodigy disciple of the Hengyue Sect from a hundred years ago, the personal disciple of the current Hengyue Sect Master, True Person Huang Long, and was even hailed as the most talented disciple on Suzaku Star.
Because Lin Che, as a Transmigrator, possessed extraordinary talent and exceptional bone structure. He reached Qi Condensation at three, Foundation Establishment at five, and even achieved the perfected stage of Foundation Establishment at eight.
He became the first cultivator on Suzaku Star to break through to the False Core stage at thirteen, making his name known throughout Zhao Country, and even the Tongtian Tower inspection envoy, Lin Yi, paid close attention to him.
However, good times did not last. As a prodigy disciple of Hengyue Sect, Lin Che exceptionally obtained the qualification for the Outer Battlefield cleanup, which opened only once every hundred years.
However, just as Lin Che stepped into the Outer Battlefield, he suddenly encountered a spatial crack and was sucked into it, his life or death unknown until now.
Upon learning of this, True Person Huang Long entered the Outer Battlefield at all costs to search for him, but ultimately returned empty-handed.
Lin Yi, as the envoy of Zhao Country, teamed up with a Giant Demon Clan expert and once again went to the Outer Battlefield to search, but found no news. They eventually unanimously decided that Lin Che had perished in the battlefield.
Even True Person Huang Long lost her last hope.
However, what they didn't know was that Lin Che hadn't died. Instead, he was transported by the spatial crack to the even more dangerous Ancient God Land. For a hundred years, Lin Che's life could be described as a living hell.
Every day, he had to face the pursuit of experts from the Ancient God Land, and constantly resist the attacks of wandering souls.
Lin Che miraculously survived. In order to return to his own world, he decided to cultivate through slaughter in this place.
It wasn't until he broke through to the Infant Transformation Realm after enduring countless hardships that he was able to successfully deter the experts of the Ancient God Land and leave that accursed place.
Over the past hundred years, the world had long since changed, and things were no longer the same.
How many centuries can one's life have?!
"Who goes there? How dare you trespass upon my Hengyue Sect?!"
As several Core Formation stage cultivators appeared in the sky, all the disciples of Hengyue Sect looked at Lin Che in the sky with grave expressions, as if facing a formidable enemy. At the same time, many disciples brought out their immortal swords and aimed them at Lin Che's position.
Lin Che landed steadily on the ground, one hand behind his back, and slowly spoke with a calm gaze: "Elder Liu Wenju, Elder Li Qinghou, long time no see."
Hearing the other party call out their names, the two white-haired old men leading the group were first stunned, and their aged faces also showed subtle changes.
But they tried hard to recall, yet they had never seen Lin Che before, so naturally, they didn't know his specific identity.
Elder Liu Wenju said in an unfriendly tone, "Fellow Daoist, who are you? Why do you know this old man?"
Lin Che waved his right hand forward, and in an instant, a completely azure jade token quietly appeared in the air. And directly above the jade token, a large character 'Lin' was engraved.
At the sight of the jade token, all the elders of Hengyue Sect were stunned, rubbing their eyes in disbelief, because this jade token had only been given to one disciple in the entire Hengyue Sect for a thousand years.
That was the prodigy disciple who had perished a hundred years ago, Lin Che!
"You, you're really... Lin Che!"
Liu Wenju looked up in astonishment, staring at Lin Che in disbelief.
Liu Wenju and the others were deeply shocked, unable to believe that Lin Che, the prodigy disciple of Hengyue Sect who had disappeared for a hundred years, would actually have a day of return.
True Person Huang Long, as the sect master, looked at Lin Che before her, and memories of the past flooded her mind. She involuntarily trembled and said, "Is it really you, Lin Che?!"
"After a hundred years, has Master forgotten me?"
Lin Che's voice was cold, like ten-thousand-year-old ice, sending shivers down one's spine. A hundred years of slaughter had depleted his spiritual energy, and it was only after leaving that strange space that his hair turned white overnight.
True Person Huang Long walked up to Lin Che in disbelief, scenes from years past replayed like a movie in her mind. She couldn't believe that her most cherished disciple from back then had returned to her side in such a way.
"It's really you... Lin Che..."
True Person Huang Long was in immense pain, gripping Lin Che's shoulders tightly, tears welling up in the corners of her eyes, her voice choked: "Lin Che, where have you been all these years? Since you're still alive, why didn't you return to Hengyue Sect?!"