The journey aboard the "Vermilion Bird's Grace," the medium-sized, luxuriously appointed sky-ship of the Burning Sky Sect, was an experience in itself. As they sailed through the clouds high in the sky, leaving the familiar volcanic peaks of their territory behind, Lux found himself with rare moments of solitude in his private cabin. The ship was a testament to the sect's wealth and status, far more suited for a diplomatic delegation than a simple transport vessel. Its hull was carved from spiritual ironwood, inlaid with formations that glowed with a soft, protective light. The air within was constantly purified, carrying the subtle scent of sandalwood and ozone.
At thirteen and as a reincarnate soul, Lux was now old enough to appreciate the political significance of their conveyance. This isn't just travel it's a statement, he mused during a meditation break. We are announcing our presence and our power. I wonder how many other major factions will be attending this Grand Auction. The thought was both thrilling and daunting. He would be in a room, or at least a city, filled with cultivators from across the Verdant Lotus World, many of whom now knew his name for reasons he still found unsettling.
"Primitive, but aesthetically passable for a mortal construct," Mobius's voice commented, pulling Lux from his thoughts. "The energy efficiency of the core propulsion formation is a lamentable 34.7 percent. A gross misuse of spirit stones. The structural integrity, however, is adequate. Coefficient of 0.99965. It should withstand attacks from early-stage Nascent Souls."
"Always the critic," Lux replied mentally, a faint smile touching his lips. "But since you're in a measuring mood..."
He closed his eyes, and the world shifted into a tapestry of shimmering coefficients. He focused his Möbius Gauge on the ship itself, his perception expanding through the decks. The results were fascinating.
Vermilion Bird's Grace Internal Scan
Hull Integrity CoR 0.99965 (Stable)
Primary Defense Formation CoR 0.99955 (Active, Multi-Layered)
Core Propulsion CoR 0.99930 (High Energy Output, Moderate Efficiency)
Life Support Systems CoR 0.99970 (Stable, Clean)
His attention then turned to the crew. He could sense the fifteen Core Forging cultivators going about their duties with practiced efficiency. Six were stationed deep in the lower decks, their energies intertwined with the ship's defensive and detection formations. Their coefficients were a steady, humming 0.99940-0.99950. Another six were positioned at external watch posts around the ship, their auras sharp and vigilant, scanning the skies. The final two were not on the ship itself but rode atop the two majestic Sky-Soarer Eagles, powerful Stage 4 Spirit Beasts whose stable energy fluctuations, equivalent to Core Forging Realm, merged seamlessly with the wind. The ship's captain, a stern-looking woman with a coefficient of 0.99960, stood on the command bridge, her will directing the entire vessel.
Then, Lux focused on the upper deck, where the most powerful auras resided. Grand Elder Lina and her four Nascent Soul guards were in their quarters, each room shielded by sophisticated privacy formations. The coefficients of these barriers were a high 0.99980, effectively blocking his spiritual sense from penetrating. He could feel the dense, formidable auras within Lina's a calculated 0.99992, and her guards a menacing 0.99988-0.99990 but the details were obscured.
Where are you? Lux thought, shifting his search. He expanded his perception, scanning the empty corridors, the storage rooms, even the space directly above and below the ship. He searched for any anomaly, any flicker of energy that felt out of place, any signature that matched Protector Ming's profound stillness or Kyle's deliberate obscurity.
Nothing.
It was as if they had vanished. He couldn't find even a trace of their coefficients. It was both reassuring and unnerving. Reassuring because their concealment was so perfect it was undetectable even to him. Unnerving because, in the vast emptiness of the sky, not knowing where your most powerful protectors were left a lingering sense of vulnerability.
"Your primitive scanning is insufficient to detect a conscious entity that wishes to remain unseen, worm," Mobius stated, a hint of amusement in its tone. "The old one has merged his existence with the flow of natural law around this vessel. The concealment expert has reduced his reality footprint to near-zero. You are looking for a specific fish in the ocean, but they have become the water itself."
Lux sighed, conceding the point. He withdrew his perception, the world snapping back to normal. He would have to trust in their presence. For now, he returned to his meditation, the steady hum of the ship's engines a constant companion as they sailed deeper into neutral territory, the landscape below transforming from fiery mountains to rolling, spirit-rich hills that marked the outer influence of the Life Root Sect. The journey was peaceful, but the silence felt heavy with unspoken threats.
On the second day of the journey, as the "Vermilion Bird's Grace" crossed a vast, mist-shrouded valley that marked the final stretch of neutral territory before the dense, ancient forests of the Life Root Sect began, the peace was shattered.
Unbeknownst to the delegation inside the comfortably gliding ship, a shadow was tailing them. Several miles behind, hidden within a bank of perpetual cloud, Protector Ming sat cross-legged on the back of his personal spirit beast, a serene-looking beast with lesser Qilin blood whose hooves barely touched the vapors. Kyle stood beside him, his form flickering in and out of visual existence, his entire focus on maintaining a perfect Sphere of Unbeing around them a spiritual art that not only concealed their presence but also muted all energy signatures and spiritual probes.
Ming's eyes, which usually held the tranquility of ages, suddenly sharpened. He didn't turn his head, but his spiritual sense had brushed against something cold, deliberate, and hostile.
"We have company, Kyle," Ming's voice was a soft murmur, lost in the wind. "Six of them. A blade intended for the boy's back."
Kyle's expression didn't change, but the energy maintaining the concealment field intensified. "Positions?"
"One at the Sixth Stage of Nascent Soul, leading. Five at the Fourth Stage, flanking. They are using a Veil of Wandering wind Mist technique. Adequate for fooling most, but... insufficient." A faint, almost imperceptible smile touched Ming's lips. It was the smile of a master who had just seen an apprentice attempt a technique he himself had perfected millennia ago.
The assassins believed their approach was undetected. They planned to close the distance in the valley's cover and launch a swift, overwhelming assault on the sky-ship, aiming to disable it, kill the guards, and extract the "Star Child" before any organized resistance could form.
But they were wrong.