Chapter 394: Sky Quarter Rainbow
Bai Xiaochun had just been in the middle of performing some breathing exercises, so the sudden arrival of the jade slip caused his eyes to go wide. Shivering, he said, “The Sky Quarter peak lord? He wants to see me?
“What does he want? I don’t even know him!” From the tone he had detected in that voice just now, the speaker hadn’t seemed very pleased.
“What’s going on!?” Even as Bai Xiaochun’s nervousness began to mount, Master God-Diviner and Xu Baocai showed up, serious expressions on their faces. Big Fatty Zhang seemed very angry, and the other leaders all looked extremely anxious.
Xu Baocai gritted his teeth and said, “Junior Patriarch, the Starry Sky Dao Polarity Sect just issued orders prohibiting the trafficking of Fantasy Pills! This is definitely the handiwork of the Celestial Sky Society. They’re trying to cut off our main source of income!”
Xu Baocai’s life had been quite comfortable lately, and he had very much enjoyed seeing merit points rolling in without stop. But now, it seemed that it all was coming to an end; how could he not get nervous?
“What do we do, Boss?”
“Without Fantasy Pills, the Azure Dragon Society is in great danger!”
“That’s right. We’ve been expanding too quickly recently, and the news about the restrictions on the Fantasy Pills is definitely going to spread like wildfire through the city….”
Xu Baocai wasn’t the only nervous one. The other cultivators in the Azure Dragon Society were all thinking the same thing. After all, the vast majority of the Azure Dragon Society’s income came from Fantasy Pills.
Without those pills, the Azure Dragon Society’s enormous size would quickly become its biggest disadvantage. After all, to maintain its current size required a significant merit point expenditure in salaries.
If too much time went by, they would be forced to cut back in certain areas, and the Celestial Sky Society would definitely take advantage of that. They would go in for the kill, and try to destroy all the advances that the Azure Dragon Society had made in the past.
In the final analysis, the biggest problem was that the Azure Dragon Society didn’t have any resources built up. Compared to the Celestial Sky Society, they were like a huge, empty building, fundamentally unstable and prone to collapse at any moment.
Sadly, other than Bai Xiaochun’s Dao protectors, virtually all of the other Azure Dragon Society cultivators present were all starting to ponder what move to make next.
If the leadership was doing that, it almost wasn’t necessary to mention the ordinary cultivators who made up the rest of the organization. Bai Xiaochun knew that if he didn’t handle this situation well, the entire Azure Dragon Society could collapse.
However, now wasn’t the moment to ponder the Azure Dragon Society’s situation. The glittering jade slip still hovered in front of him, and even as everyone who had just rushed in was still peppering him with questions, his eyes flashed, and he cleared his throat.
“What are you getting so anxious for!?” Everyone’s mouths snapped shut. Bai Xiaochun was the boss of the Azure Dragon Society, and a Gold Core cultivator. Even more importantly, he was the inventor of the Fantasy Pill. Although he didn’t have much of a role in the daily operations of the organization, the Azure Dragon Society was his, and he was the most stabilizing force within it.
“I know the Celestial Sky Society has powerful backers, but did you really think I wouldn’t have some too?!” With that, he rose to his feet, stuck his chin up, and the pointed at the jade slip.
“Look at that, all of you. What is it?” Everyone looked over in surprise, and soon people realized that it was an object from the rainbow district.
“That’s the command medallion of the peak lord of Sky Quarter Rainbow!!”
“I knew I saw a beam of light flying down from Sky Quarter Rainbow! So, it came here. It was actually a message for our exalted boss!” The cultivators of the Azure Dragon Society couldn’t help but gasp as they looked over at Bai Xiaochun, eyes shining with bright light.
“Don’t tell me that the boss actually has special connections with Sky Quarter itself?!?!” As everyone was reeling in shock, Xu Baocai, Master God-Diviner, and Big Fatty Zhang were all staring at Bai Xiaochun with blank looks, completely unable to wrap their minds around how he could possibly be connected to the Sky Quarter peak lord.
“As long as you understand the situation,” Bai Xiaochun said coolly. “Well, now I’m going to go pay a formal visit to the Sky Quarter peak lord. We’ll figure out our next step after I get back!” With that, he waved his sleeve, grabbing the jade slip and walking out the chamber.
As he left, all of the Azure Dragon Society cultivators clasped hands and bowed. Although they were still somewhat worried, they felt much more relieved than they had been moments before. That attitude would have a big influence on the cultivators under their control, and at the very least, would ensure that the restrictions placed on Fantasy Pills would not cause chaos in the Azure Dragon Society, at least not for the time being.
Bai Xiaochun’s act had been pulled off perfectly. Even Big Fatty Zhang had been taken in, and watched Bai Xiaochun with both confidence and anticipation.
However, as soon as Bai Xiaochun left the Azure Dragon Society’s immortal’s cave, he almost collapsed into tears. Moments before, he had been standing tall and straight, but now he was wracked with anxiety. At the same time, his rage toward the Celestial Sky Society burned hotter than ever. However, there was no time now to dwell on his anger.
“What does the Sky Quarter peak lord want with me…?” he thought nervously as he headed toward a certain location in the central district of Sky City that led to the rainbow district.
This was where newly-promoted yellow-robed disciples would come to head to the rainbow. As for red- and orange-robed disciples, they could only enter this area if they had special invitations or orders.
Upon reaching the teleportation portal, he produced the jade slip and took a deep breath. Trying to look solemn and tragic, as if he were going for broke, he stepped forward into the portal.
Rumbling sounds could be heard, along with the dazzling light of teleportation, which wrapped around him for a moment before fading away, and him along with it.
When he reappeared, he was in the third level of rainbows at the bottom of the waterfall, on the second rainbow.
As soon as he materialized, he looked around to find himself surrounded by richly ornamented buildings connected by green jade paths. Immortal trees flourished everywhere, and spiritual energy wafted about, making the place seem like the picture of a celestial paradise.
There were ponds and immortal’s caves, as well as domesticated spirit creatures frolicking within the trees and waters. Soft, seven-colored light permeated the entire area, creating a spectacular scene of beauty.
Yellow-robed disciples could be seen everywhere, sitting in meditation or strolling about. Everything was quiet and peaceful, completely lacking the raucous brouhaha common in Sky City. There were flowing crowds of people, and yet all of the cultivators looked cold and indifferent. Each and every one seemed tall and slender, with mysterious light swirling around them that made them seem like something from beyond the mortal world.
Apparently, there was some sort of restrictive spell in place that made the strong spiritual energy softer and more gentle, and ensured that one’s energy was not drained while absorbing it.
Bai Xiaochun was immediately taken aback. This was his first time seeing the world that existed on the rainbow, and he couldn’t help but rub his eyes to make sure he wasn’t seeing things. Sure enough, it was all there. One interesting thing he noted was that although the rainbow district was large, it was only about half the size of Sky City.
Even as Bai Xiaochun looked around in amazement, the air in front of him distorted, and a female yellow-robed disciple stepped out of thin air. She had long flowing hair, and lovely facial features, although her expression was a bit cold. Looking Bai Xiaochun up and down, she said, “You’re Bai Xiaochun?”
A serious expression took over Bai Xiaochun’s eyes. This young woman was at the peak of the early Core Formation stage, just like him, and yet the method she had used to appear in front of him was quite astonishing.
This was his first time encountering someone in the Starry Sky Dao Polarity Sect who was in the same cultivation level as himself, and also his first time seeing first hand some of the divine abilities and magical techniques that he had only just heard about so far.
If her cultivation base had been higher than his, he might have reacted differently. But considering they were in the same level, he decided that he couldn’t let himself look weak, so he proudly stated, “Yeah, I’m Bai Xiaochun. Who are you?”
“Come with me. My Master wants to see you. By the way, watch your step around here. Core Formation cultivators can get killed here very easily if they get lost.” With that, she turned and began to walk off.
Her words made Bai Xiaochun feel more nervous than ever as he hurried to follow her. The two of them became two beams of bright light that shot off into the distance.
As they flew along, Bai Xiaochun looked down at the things passing by below, and quickly came to realize how the Sky Quarter Rainbows were set up. There were five ring-shaped districts that seemed to be filled with more coldness and pressure the further they went toward the center.
Eventually, the young woman led him to the middle ring, where a shockingly tall mountain peak became visible. It was surrounded by dazzling seven-colored light, and was completely devoid of any type of plants or vegetation. The only thing visible on the peak was an enormous temple, gray in color and surrounded by an indescribable energy. Just by looking at it, Bai Xiaochun got the feeling that it wasn’t a temple, but rather, an ancient wild beast.
The young woman came to a stop after leading Bai Xiaochun to the foot of the mountain. Then, she stepped back a few paces, maintaining her silence. Even as Bai Xiaochun was wondering what exactly she was doing, an ancient voice suddenly drifted out from the temple at the peak of the mountain.
“Admit to your crimes, Bai Xiaochun!”