Chapter 1692: The Upper Realm Sect (Part Two)

“Which cultivators have arrived? State your purpose, or remain where you are!”

While the group was still lost in wonder, a shout rang out. The voice echoed through the peaks, causing the heavens to rumble with a sound that lingered long after the words were spoken.

“Disciples of the lower-realm Malevolent Spirit Sect, arriving after ascension!” Mo Qing called out loudly, taking a deep breath.

At his call, everyone—including Zi Kun—produced their identity tokens. Zi Kun even brought out his Little Bamboo Peak token.

“Ascended cultivators? Why are there so many of you at once? Did you happen to meet in the upper realm before coming here together?”

The moment their tokens appeared, a divine sense swept over them with lightning speed. A voice full of suspicion and uncertainty followed, though its tone was significantly softer and no longer sought to intimidate.

Several figures emerged from the mist ahead. Six people blocked their path; five stood in a row behind a leader who stood slightly forward. All six wore dark-green robes—the same sect attire Li Yan and the others knew so well.

‘One Mid-stage Nascent Soul and five Golden Core cultivators. Such a guard detail… even the Moji Daoist Sect is barely on this level,’ Li Yan thought. He had detected them long ago and sensed many other formidable auras within the gate, all remaining stationary. Clearly, the Malevolent Spirit Sect was exceptionally cautious with its security.

Mo Qing and the others studied the six before them. The leader was a brawny, bald man. However, what drew everyone’s attention was their clothing. On the cuffs of all six were embroidered patterns. Upon seeing them, the group was even more shocked. These, too, were patterns they knew intimately: a golden compass was embroidered on each of their sleeves.

‘The symbol of the Four Directions Peak? Is it possible the five peaks we saw earlier are the same as in the lower realm?’ This thought occurred to everyone simultaneously.

The lower-realm sect knew little of the upper realm. The information left for them only contained the location and various inheritance techniques. There were no records of what the upper-realm sect actually looked like, leaving it a mystery to the lower-realm disciples.

While Mo Qing’s side was observing the guards, the bald leader and his team were doing the same. They had already examined the tokens; there were no issues. One was from Old Gentleman Peak, and the rest were from Little Bamboo Peak.

However, several things puzzled them. First was the question the bald man had asked. To his knowledge, it was rare for even two or three people to ascend together. Nascent Soul cultivators in the lower realm were limited in number, and even if they ascended in pairs, the mortality rate during the passage was incredibly high.

Furthermore, after arriving in the upper realm, unless the spatial node was near the sect, they had to survive a dangerous journey. The chance of a Nascent Soul cultivator being killed en route was high; even Spirit Transformation cultivators had met tragic ends just miles from safety.

Thus, he assumed these people had ascended at different times. Because their cultivation was low, they couldn’t reach the sect quickly and had stayed somewhere to cultivate. Perhaps they met subsequent ascenders and formed a group for safety.

Additionally, what was the deal with that Golden Core girl? Had these people gone mad? Who would dare bring a Golden Core cultivator through the ascension passage? Were they tired of living?

‘That Golden Core girl… she must have been born in the upper realm,’ the bald man thought, his gaze lingering on Li Zhaoyan. He saw her Little Bamboo Peak token. Seeing so many men and women in the group, he reached a conclusion: if both parents were from the Malevolent Spirit Sect, giving the child a token was only natural.

“That is not the case. We ascended together in a single effort!” Mo Qing’s answer, however, completely defied the six guards’ expectations.

Within the mountain gate, the group stood waiting for word. Only the bald leader remained with them, having already sent a voice transmission to the interior. The other guards had returned to their posts. The bald man began chatting with Li Yan. In his eyes, Li Yan was the strongest and therefore the leader.

Earlier, Mo Qing had spoken to him because their cultivation was equal, but now the man sought to probe Li Yan. Li Yan and the others picked up on this intent and engaged in idle chatter to keep him at bay.

Mo Qing and Wei Zhongran stood to the side, not explaining their relationships. In the cultivation world, strength was respected above all; they understood the bald man’s bias. Li Yan had chosen not to suppress his cultivation to the Nascent Soul realm for a specific reason. He was an experienced ascender and knew that even Spirit Transformation cultivators were common in the upper realm. However, this would affect the allocation of resources. He wanted to secure the best possible foundation for his kin, even if he had to leave for a time.

Though Wei Zhongran and the others could technically hold their own against a Spirit Transformation cultivator for a short time, they were still at the Nascent Soul realm—far too weak. First, they needed the ability to protect themselves. He couldn’t look after them forever, and knowing their personalities, none of them were the type to rely solely on others. Li Yan wanted to buy them time to reach Spirit Transformation.

Given the grand laws and abundant resources of the Immortal Spirit Realm, their progress would be swift. Their growth wasn’t just for their own sakes; Li Yan had other plans. After being tracked by the Yin-Yang Primordial Chaos Sect in the lower realm, he knew his identity might eventually be exposed. Passive defense was never his style. Once Zhao Min and the others grew stronger, they would become his greatest allies. He couldn’t fight this war alone.

Simultaneously, he had a grander plan he hadn’t yet shared with Dong Fuyi. It required small, experimental steps to see what was possible. If Gu Jiuqi’s message hadn’t reached the upper-realm sect yet, Li Yan intended to report the lower-realm crisis himself.

The bald man found the youth before him to be incredibly deep and calculated. He couldn’t get any meaningful information out of him. He couldn’t force the issue either; their tokens were valid, and every peak here had ascended disciples. These ascenders were the elite of each peak—unwaveringly united and notoriously ruthless. In a real fight, local disciples were often crushed by the sheer ferocity of those who had survived the lower realm. Bringing a Golden Core girl through ascension was proof enough of their madness.

Through their conversation, the bald man also realized that while the Nascent Souls seemed new, this dark-skinned youth seemed quite familiar with the Immortal Spirit Realm. He suspected the youth might have arrived long ago and was simply telling a tall tale…

Meanwhile, Li Yan confirmed one thing from the man’s words: the lower-realm sect was built as an exact replica of the upper-realm one. There were the same five peaks, with Old Gentleman Peak as the primary one. Ascended disciples would return to the peaks they had belonged to in the lower realm.

Though the man didn’t specify the benefits, the group could guess them. First, it provided an immediate sense of belonging. Second, the inheritances and rules were identical, allowing them to integrate naturally without explanation.