Dragon's Peak Mountain.
Dragon Blossom Sect.
In the serene surroundings of a beautifully crafted gazebo, Mistress Lingxi and Lady Hua engaged in a riveting game of xiangqi.
"Are you all right, Senior Sister?" asked Lady Hua. "It's been quite some time since you joined me in a game of chess, usually you're more engrossed in communing with the spirits or honing your cultivation," she added.
The silence that the game required was broken.
Mistress Lingxi let out a calm sigh.
"I felt the need for a respite, particularly with the impending examinations to select new disciples. I suppose you could say I'm quite intrigued to witness the proceedings this year."
Lady Hua nodded in agreement.
"Indeed, it has been a while since we observed the selection exams for the Dragon Blossom Sect's new disciples."
As Mistress Lingxi casually moved a xiangqi piece and poised to slam it onto the board, she raised an eyebrow and teased Lady Hua, "How long has it been exactly? It feels like just a couple of years since the last selection exams."
Lady Hua chuckled lightly and smoothly maneuvered a xiangqi piece before replying, "It's more like twenty years, Senior Sister."
Mistress Lingxi's expression shifted as she gently stroked her chin, reflecting.
"Ah, I see."
"So you really did forget, Senior Sister."
"Indeed. However, the more devout you become in your cultivation, the more time seems to slip away."
With a swift movement, Mistress Lingxi strategically moved another xiangqi piece, swiftly capturing two of Lady Hua's pieces.
Lady Hua smiled and nodded.
"Indeed, time loses its significance."
Mu Lingxi.
A senior disciple known for her captivating beauty and strong affinity with nature. She possessed a rare talent for communing with the spirits of the Dragon's Peak Mountain.
She was only recently promoted to the rank of Elder Disciple after her cultivation flourished to the 2nd Path — the Spirit Ascension Realm's 1st level.
She had become a Spirit Ascendant.
These were Cultivators who had cultivated their Nascent Soul to its peak form.
They had a profound understanding of the laws and principles of the universe and could manipulate spiritual energy on a grand scale.
The sun began to descend over the horizon.
Lady Hua made a suggestion.
"Senior Sister, perhaps later today we could take a trip to the Capital City and pay a visit to Qi Master Huo. His knowledge on ancient artifacts might prove beneficial in flourishing your cultivation."
"I haven't heard of him before," said Mistress Lingxi.
"Allegedly, he only recently became popular, as at sixteen years ago."
"I see," Mistress Lingxi moved another piece. "You should also focus on flourishing your cultivation as well, Junior Sister."
"I suppose you're right."
"How far has your cultivation gone?"
"Well," Lady Hua scratched the back of her head sheepishly. "I'm on the 7th level of the Core Formation Realm, Core Manifestation..."
"Impressive."
Lady Hua calmly nodded and shifted another piece on the xiangqi board.
SENIOR SISTER LINGXI JUST GAVE ME A COMPLIMENT!!
She looked calm on the exterior, but she was screaming on the inside.
"Also, Senior Sister, I was wondering if y..."
But as she was about to finish her sentence, Mistress Lingxi abruptly stood up.
Her gaze shifted to the right.
It was fixated deep into the craggy mountains that enveloped the landscape.
Lady Hua, noticing the change in Mistress Lingxi's demeanor, asked, "Is something the matter?"
Mistress Lingxi looked intensely focused.
She turned towards Lady Hua and softly murmured, "Can't you sense it?"
Lady Hua, raising an inquisitive eyebrow, responded, "Sense what?"
Despite being a proficient 1st Path Cultivator, Lady Hua was unable to perceive anything beyond the typical ebb and flow of energy within the Dragon's Peak Mountain.
Unlike her, Mistress Lingxi had a profound harmony with nature and the spirits dwelling in the mountain.
It granted her heightened extrasensory perception that went beyond being a 2nd Path Cultivator.
There was a disturbance in the natural energy.
Unveiling her unsettling observation, Mistress Lingxi calmly told Lady Hua, "I can't quite explain it, but I've never felt this kind of energy before. It's as if..."
Lady Hua, urging her to continue, asked, "It's as if what?"
Mistress Lingxi struggled to articulate the anomaly, eventually revealing, "It's as if there's a gaping void in the heart of the sect."
Bewildered, Lady Hua questioned, "A black hole? That's preposterous."
Mistress Lingxi affirmed, "Indeed, something of that nature."
Lady Hua wouldn't dare doubt her Senior Sister. She knew her abilities and knew how deeply connected she was to the Dragon's Peak Mountain.
Her guess might as well be a fact.
Lady Hua looked a little concerned. "What do you plan to do, Senior Sister?"
"Who dares play with me, Mu Lingxi, in such a manner... I'll make sure they suffer for this."
"It shouldn't be difficult for you to defeat them."
Mistress Lingxi looked at Lady Hua. "Don't be ridiculous, I'll torture his soul for a thousand years, and that's just the beginning."
Woah, Senior Sister Lingxi is scary... Lady Hua thought.
Closing her eyes and clasping her hands together.
"Flux."
Mistress Lingxi entered a meditative state, invoking the power of fire through her Qi. With precise movements and intricate hand seals, she kindled her spiritual essence, transmuting it into a scorching flame within her dantian. Concentrating this fiery energy into her palm, she imbued it with immense heat, shaping it into a pulsating orb of incandescent power. Molding and refining the essence into a blazing bow, she further refined it into an arrow, binding her spiritual energy with its physical form.
"Emberstorm Bow of the Celestial Phoenix."
Drawing the bowstring of flames, she released the arrow with astonishing speed, the intense friction distorting space-time around its path.
Lady Hua stood in amazement.
She witnessed the ethereal arrow's unfathomable trajectory, cleaving through the skies with inexplicable velocity.
It set on a course for Yang Wei.
Yang Wei was suspended high above the Dragon Blossom Sect.
The arrow surged forward, carving through the air at an incomprehensible rate until it reached its target.
With a breath of relief, Mistress Lingxi returned to her seat beside the xiangqi board.
"Let's continue our game," she said.
Lady Hua had no reason to doubt the abilities of her Senior Sister.
Mu Lingxi was a strong woman.
However, Yang Wei was beyond strength.
Yang Wei was completely unaware of the imminent danger.
And yet, all he did was to nonchalantly let out a yawn.
As the fiery arrow hurtled towards him, he effortlessly dodged it by tilting his neck to the side.
This was thanks to his defensive magic known as [Stellar Foresight].
When the first attack was unleashed upon him, he automatically evaded, even when unaware of the impending danger, thus ensuring his safety and survival in unforeseen circumstances.
Even without conscious volition, his body would react with the precision of a celestial dancer. Whether through an instinctual sidestep, a swift dodge, or a nuanced shift in posture, Yang Wei seamlessly avoided any and all first-action blitz attack.
The inferno arrow zoomed past him and then erupted in a cataclysmic explosion that reverberated across the entire Dragon's Peak Mountain, causing panic among the sects dwelling there.
The explosion created a swirling vortex that ripped through the fabric of space, creating multiple rifts before finally collapsing in on itself.
Despite the chaos, Yang Wei remained unperturbed.
The disciples of the Dragon Blossom Sect, however, were thrown into disarray, with some screaming that they were facing imminent death, while others questioned the bizarre events unfolding before them.
Amidst the clamor, a novice disciple pointed skyward and exclaimed, "Look at that man floating in the skies!"
An outer disciple marveled at Yang Wei's aerial prowess, proclaiming, "He's able to fly; he must be several levels above the Core Formation Realm already!"
"We have no chance against him!"
In response, Yang Wei offered a wry smile and casually remarked, "It seems the people of this world possess remarkable power, but it appears they don't utilize magic."
Meanwhile, at the gazebo where Mistress Lingxi and Lady Hua were still engrossed in their game of xiangqi.
As the xiangqi piece slipped from Mistress Lingxi's grasp and clattered onto the wooden floor, Lady Hua looked at her.
"What's wrong, Senior Sister?"
Rising to her feet, Mistress Lingxi told her, "My previous attack, it failed."
"Wait, what?!" Lady Hua was absolutely flabbergasted.
This prompted Mistress Lingxi to storm towards the gazebo's exit, seething, "How dare he dodge my attack so casually! He's courting death!"
Without further ado, she vanished in a brilliant flash of golden flame.