The brazen declarations of the Golden Shell Guild had sent a tsunami through the political landscape of the cultivation world. The subsequent tribute paid by the Third Prince was a quiet, humiliating affair that solidified the Guild's reputation as a terrifying and unshakeable new power. The world was watching, and for the first time in centuries, the Green Mountain Sect was not an object of condescension, but of a fearful, profound respect.
In the hidden chamber deep within the Sect Master's peak, the atmosphere was one of sober satisfaction. The immediate threat had been neutralized with an efficiency that still boggled the minds of the sect's leadership.
"The tribute has arrived at your northern branch, then?" the Sect Master asked.
Li Yu, who had been summoned for a final report before his planned seclusion, nodded. "Guild Master Kui confirmed it this morning via a long-range communication array. The Third Prince was… very generous, clearly he didn't want conflict with the Golden Shell Company. The Guild is still a new enterprise and requires immense resources to grow, but I have instructed them to send a portion to the sect's treasury as a gesture of our partnership."
"That is good," Grand Elder Chen said, a warm, proud smile on his face. "But Little Yu, you must not neglect your own needs. You keep the wealth. Use it to strengthen your own foundation. Your power is the true shield of this sect."
Li Yu simply smiled, not bothering to argue. His 'needs' were met by a source of wealth far greater than any imperial tribute.
With the northern situation stabilized, a new, more personal matter was reaching its conclusion. A full month after Fengliu had departed on his mission, a new report arrived. He had found her.
The arrival was a discreet affair. A single, sleek, shadow-grey bird of prey, a beast none of the sect elders recognized, was seen approaching from the north at an incredible speed. It was a Mist-Winged Phantom Eagle, a rare creature known for its ability to fly silently and blend into the clouds, a perfect mount for a spymaster.
It landed not at the main gate, but on the secluded personal peak of the First Elder, Jin Wei. The First Elder was already there waiting, alongside a pale, nervous, but fiercely hopeful Su Ling. They had been notified by the Sect Master, through Li Yu that her mother was returning.
From the Roc's back, two figures disembarked. The first was Fengliu, his elegant, sky-prince form as graceful and aloof as ever. The second was a woman of middle age, her beauty still evident but marred by years of weariness and fear. She wore the simple, travel-stained robes of a commoner, but she carried herself with an ingrained, unshakable nobility. This was Lin Ruyan, the fifth consort of the late Emperor, and Su Ling's mother.
The moment she saw her daughter, her carefully constructed composure shattered. "Xiaowei…" she whispered, her voice a choked, emotional rasp.
"Mother!" Su Ling cried out, the years of separation, the fear, and the longing finally breaking through her own disciplined exterior. The two of them rushed into each other's arms, a tearful, desperate reunion under the silent, watchful eyes of the First Elder and the Roc King.
Fengliu, his task complete, gave a slight, respectful bow to the emotional scene. "My duty is done. She is safe now." He then turned, his form a blur of iridescent light as he shot into the sky, heading for Li Yu's valley. His mission was complete, and his report to his true master was still due. A month spent in the desolate, draining energy of the northern wastes had been taxing, even for a sovereign. The vibrant, life-affirming energy of the Koi's Sanctuary was not a necessity for his survival, but it was a peerless luxury, an environment that could replenish his reserves and strengthen his cultivation far more efficiently than months of meditation in the outside world. He would not pass up such an opportunity.
He arrived at Li Yu's pagoda to find him in the quiet garden, sharing a cup of tea with Cyra. Fengliu gave his report, his voice a calm, melodic baritone. The initial foundations of the Whispering Wing Pavilion were laid. He had already started integrating his old network, and with the Guild's funding, he was expanding its reach at a good rate. He had eyes and ears in a dozen northern cities now, and his web was slowly, silently, beginning to stretch across the continent.
After his report, Li Yu granted him entry into the Koi's Sanctuary. Fengliu spent a full day within, his physical body meditating in the garden while his spirit soared through the vibrant, energy-rich world of Li Yu's martial spirit, replenishing his own reserves and deepening his understanding of the impossible power his new master commanded.
When he finally emerged, his weariness was gone, replaced by a new, sharp, and intensely focused vitality. With a final bow, he departed once more, a ghost on the wind, returning to the shadows to continue his true, secret work.
Meanwhile, on the First Elder's peak, the emotional reunion continued. After a long while, Lin Ruyan, her tears finally spent, turned to the First Elder. "Old friend," she said, her voice full of a deep, profound gratitude. "You have kept your promise. You have kept my daughter safe. I… I do not know how I can ever repay you."
"There is no debt between us, Ruyan," the First Elder said, his own stern face softened by a rare, gentle smile. "But the one you should truly be thanking is not me. The sect was prepared to fight for her, yes, but the true reason the Third Prince's forces were so… decisively repelled… was because of the intervention of our new, powerful allies."
"Allies?" she asked, her expression confused.
"The Golden Shell Guild," Su Ling explained, her own eyes shining with a complex mixture of awe and reverence. "They have declared our sect to be under their protection. It was their power that annihilated the Prince's army."
"Then I must thank them," Lin Ruyan said, her resolve firm. "Who is their leader? I must offer my respects."
And so, she was told of the mysterious, powerful, and cheerful merchant-sovereign who led the Guild, a man known only as Kui. Her gratitude, and the gratitude of the royal lineage she represented, was now firmly directed at the public face of Li Yu's growing empire.
Li Yu, from his distant valley, watched these events unfold through the reports of his companions. He felt a quiet satisfaction. It stirred a faint, bittersweet echo in his own heart. He thought of his own parents, of their faceless, nameless end in the chaos of the Beast Tide. His desire for vengeance, once a burning inferno, had long since cooled into a bed of sober, pragmatic embers. He knew now that his path was not to avenge the past, but to protect the future, to build a world so stable, so unshakeable, that the people he cared about would never have to suffer the same fate.
Li Yu was in his private cultivation chamber, his consciousness deep within the abyss-black ocean of his spiritual core. He was not cultivating. He was simply… full. The immense constant passive absorption of life force from his ever-growing sanctuary, the potent feedback from Khaos's own refinement of two Void Cores—it had all filled his spiritual sea to the absolute brim.
His nascent soul, the crimson-gold leviathan, swam in the star-dusted depths, its presence a constant, powerful thrum. He had condensed his power to the absolute limit, forging a 1st-level Core Formation foundation that was as heavy and dense. But everything has a critical mass. He had reached a point where he could no longer compress. He could no longer contain.
He felt a deep, resonant tremor run through his entire being. His spiritual sea, the abyss-black ocean that was his core, began to swell, the tide rising with an inexorable, unstoppable force. The invisible barrier that marked the boundary of the 1st level was not shattered; it was simply… submerged.
A wave of profound, oceanic power washed through him. His nascent soul let out a silent, triumphant roar, and the star-dusted depths of his inner sea became deeper, vaster, its horizons expanding into a new, unknown territory.
In the outside world, a visible, yet contained, wave of pure power pulsed from his body, causing the very air in his cultivation chamber to shimmer and distort. His aura, which he had so carefully suppressed, broke free for a single, uncontrolled moment, its true, condensed power flaring to life.
He had advanced to the next level in his unique cultivation. He was now, by all outward appearances, a 2nd-level Core Formation expert if he were to release his full power. His actual power was much greater as his cultivation path has taken a turn from the standard, his extremely compressed and unique qi already put him in the upper realms of core formation if not peak of that realm now. His body was immensely strong and then there was his soul as well.
He slowly opened his eyes, a feeling of immense, comfortable power flowing through him. The breakthrough had been a natural, effortless thing, a river overflowing its banks. He felt… good. Stronger. More stable.
'But how much stronger?' he wondered.
There was only one way to find out. He entered his Koi's Sanctuary, his destination the dark, isolated island that was Khaos's domain.
The colossal, galaxy-shelled sovereign was in a state of deep refinement, the two Void Cores he had absorbed still being processed, the very space around him humming with a terrifying power.
"Khaos," Li Yu's voice was calm, but it held a new, hard edge of challenge. "Spar with me."
Khaos's great, nebular eye swiveled to look at him, a flicker of what might have been surprise in its cosmic depths. Then, a wave of profound, arrogant amusement washed over Li Yu. "You have broken through to the second level of your pathetic mortal realm, and you think you can now challenge this king? Your foolishness is as vast as your ambition, boy."
"I wish to test my limits," Li Yu stated simply.
"Very well," Khaos rumbled, a sound of pure, condescending indulgence. "This king is feeling magnanimous. I will allow you three moves. Try not to be too disappointing."
Li Yu did not reply. He simply took a deep breath, and his newly reinforced 2nd-level Core Formation aura flared to life. But it was not just his aura. He focused his will, his nascent soul stirring in his inner sea. 'Power. Let us become one.'
The crimson-gold leviathan surged through him, and his body was once again enveloped in a brilliant, divine light. His eyes became glowing, crimson-gold orbs, and his power swelled to a terrifying, almost uncontrollable, peak.
He did not use a technique. He simply charged, his staff of Condensed Sea Iron Ore in his hand, and unleashed a single, powerful, direct strike at one of Khaos's immense, void-black legs.
The impact was a silent, concussive boom that shook the entire island.
Khaos, who had been expecting a trivial, easily-deflected blow, was genuinely surprised. The force of the strike was immense, far beyond what even his standard of a mere 2nd-level cultivator should be able to produce. It was not enough to harm him, not even enough to scratch his sovereign-grade shell. But it was enough to make him feel the force, it was quite strong.
Li Yu was sent staggering back by the recoil, his Soul Fusion form flickering, but he was unharmed. He looked at his own hands, a look of pure, unadulterated excitement on his face.
Khaos stared at him for a long, silent moment. The arrogant amusement was gone from his gaze, replaced by a new, sharp, and intensely analytical light.
"Weak," the sovereign's voice finally boomed, the word a simple, objective statement of fact. "Your foundation is still weak. What a pathetic human being."
He paused, and the next word he uttered was the single greatest compliment Li Yu had ever received from him.
"But your power was ...decent."