Feeling the power surging within his body, Liu Bai couldn't help but wave his fist excitedly, his expression filled with joy.
However, before his smile could fully unfold, a crisp and playful voice suddenly echoed beside his ear.
"Humans really are strange creatures. Punching the air completely naked… is that some sort of special hobby of yours?"
Liu Bai froze. Without even looking to see who had spoken, he hastily pulled a set of clothes from his spatial bracelet and threw them on at lightning speed.
Only when he no longer felt that faint "breeze of sorrow" did he finally exhale in relief and turn his head to look.
Not far away, on a piece of scorched, glass-like rock, sat a black-clothed girl. Her long, slender jade-like legs swung lightly as she looked perfectly at ease.
The girl was tall and elegant, her delicate features clean and striking. Her purple eyes shimmered with a trace of untamed wildness, carrying a unique allure that could captivate any onlooker.
Without question, this girl was the Nine Nether Sparrow who had successfully transcended her tribulation.
But what surprised Liu Bai most was how the situation had reversed from the original story. In the novel, it was Mu Chen who saw the girl's body by accident, but now, somehow, it was the other way around.
Then again, he thought, the Nine Nether Sparrow had already reached the stage of Spiritual Transformation long ago. There was no way she wouldn't know about wearing clothes. After all, before transcending her tribulation, she had already been the Nine Nether King of the Great Heavenlaw Domain.
"You must be the Nine Nether Sparrow. I didn't expect your human form to be so beautiful," Liu Bai said, deliberately changing the topic.
Whether human or bird, as long as it was a woman, compliments always worked. Seeing the slight lift of her brows, he knew she was secretly pleased.
"Hmph, just as I thought, another shallow man."
Liu Bai rolled his eyes inwardly. Could you at least press down the corners of your lips before saying that?
"Your physique isn't bad, but your strength is far too weak," Jiu You circled him once, clicking her tongue twice before patting her chest confidently. "Forget it, who told me to be fooled by you anyway? Come along with your sister. A backwater place like this won't produce true experts. Come to the Great Heavenlaw Domain with me. With me watching over you, I guarantee you'll break through the first three Sovereign Disaster Stage within a year and reach the Sovereign Realm proper within two."
Liu Bai glanced at the gently trembling mountain in the distance and thought to himself, Two years to reach the Sovereign Realm? By then the flowers will have withered, won't they?
"There's no rush to go to that Great Heavenlaw Domain of yours," he said calmly. "I'll go once I reach the Sovereign Realm myself."
"What? You plan to reach the Sovereign Realm here? How long will that take, three years? Five? Don't tell me you expect me to stay here in this barren land with you until we grow old and die?" Nine Nether's purple eyes widened in disbelief.
"Do you even know who I am? In the Great Heavenlaw Domain, your sister here is a genuine King Realm powerhouse. I command countless strong followers. Men like you, I've seen thousands if not tens of thousands of them."
"With my support, you'll have endless cultivation resources at your fingertips. Isn't that far better than struggling alone? Or are you saying your background is stronger than the Great Heavenlaw Domain? Impossible…"
Seeing her skeptical look, Liu Bai could only shake his head helplessly. He was beginning to realize that this Jiu You was quite different from what he had imagined.
"Stop overthinking it," he said. "If you really want to understand me, just stay by my side."
"In your dreams!"Jiu You shot him a disdainful glance. "Hmph, you want this lady to trail behind you as some kind of bodyguard? Keep dreaming!"
"If you won't go, I'll go myself. Ungrateful little man…"
Unlike in the original story, Jiu You hadn't lost her physical body and wasn't bound to Liu Bai. If she truly wanted to leave, there was nothing he could do to stop her.
"You really want to go?" Liu Bai asked. "Aren't you afraid that if I'm killed by an enemy after you leave, you'll die with me?"
Jiu You froze.
"Ugh, despicable!"
"Don't think you can use that trick to threaten me!"
Clenching her tiny fists, her purple eyes glared furiously, as if she was ready to beat Liu Bai into submission.
"Wait, wait," Liu Bai quickly raised his hands to calm the flustered little sparrow. "How about this: give me one year. After one year, we'll set out for your Great Heavenlaw Domain. How about that?"
Jiu You frowned, pondered for a while, then finally nodded. "Fine. But during this year, you must cultivate properly. Before we head to the Great Heavenlaw Domain, you must at least overcome the Three Minor Disaster. Otherwise, I'll lose face in front of those annoying people."
Liu Bai smiled faintly and raised his palm. "It's a deal."
Although Jiu You's face showed reluctance, she still extended her slender jade-like hand and clapped her palm against his.
"Alright, it's settled then. Let's go home!" Liu Bai said with heroic enthusiasm, waving his arm grandly.
"Home? Don't tell me you're actually a native of this region?"Jiu You looked at him in genuine shock.
Liu Bai's expression darkened.
Native? What kind of term is that supposed to be?
"Why? Can't I be someone born in the Northern Spiritual Realm?" he asked irritably.
Realizing she had misspoken, Jiu You chuckled awkwardly before explaining, "That's not what I meant. I just didn't expect someone from such a remote place to be this talented. I was… a little surprised, that's all."
A genius under twenty years old who had already reached the Three Minor Disaster stage—such talent, even in the Great Heavenlaw Domain, would be extraordinary.
Seeing her sincere expression, Liu Bai decided to let it slide.
"By the way," he said, "do you have a name? I can't keep calling you Nine Nether Sparrow forever."
"Just call me Jiu You," she replied.
"Alright then. My name's Liu Bai."
"I know, I know."
"…"
As two streaks of light flashed across the sky, only a faint echo lingered in the air.
When Liu Bai brought Jiu You back to the Liu Manor, everyone in the clan was utterly stunned by her appearance.
Though the world rarely produced ugly women thanks to the effects of cultivation, a beauty of Jiu You's caliber was almost unheard of in the Northern Spiritual Realm, and even across the Northern Heaven Continent, she would be among the finest.
After all, she was officially ranked alongside renowned beauties like Luo Li and Xiao Xiao.
"Well now," Liu Bai's second uncle Liu Zong said with admiration. "No wonder you rushed off so soon after coming home. Turns out you were off finding yourself a wife!"
He chuckled, nodding in approval at the handsome young man and stunning girl beside him, his eyes gleaming with satisfaction.
After driving away the mesmerized family members who had nearly lost their senses staring at Jiu You, Liu Bai turned to his second uncle.
"Uncle, how are the preparations coming along?"
He was referring, of course, to the Liu Clan's relocation.
"Almost done," Liu Zong replied. "We've already sold off anything we can't take with us and converted it to spirit coins. As for those accompanying us, following your instructions, I've kept only a few promising youngsters and a handful of loyal elders."
"As for the Liu Territory, I plan to hand it over to Yang Gui."
"Yang Gui?" Liu Bai thought for a moment before recalling the man.
He was a powerful subordinate secretly nurtured by the Liu Clan, the leader of Mangyin Mountain. In the original tale, he had joined forces with the Liu Clan to attack the Mu Territory, only to die at Mu Chen's hands later.
Seeing Liu Bai's expression, Liu Zong knew he had remembered and didn't bother to explain further. Instead, he took out a black scroll.
"Yang Gui is currently at the Early-phase of the Divine Soul Realm," he said. "When he heard we were leaving the Liu Territory, he offered to take over. To show goodwill, he brought quite a few valuable gifts. This scroll was among them. He said it's a spiritual Array diagram, though I can't tell what kind. I was waiting for you to examine it."
At that, Liu Bai's eyes lit up.
He recalled that in the original story, Mu Chen had acquired a powerful Array diagram from Mangyin Mountain by chance. Could this be that same scroll?
"Ding. A Grade Seven Array, the Demon Lotus Spirit-Slaughtering Array, has been detected. Would you like to inscribe it?"
As expected.
Hearing the familiar system notification, Liu Bai's face showed clear delight.
Even Jiu You, who had been maintaining her usual cool and detached demeanor, couldn't help but turn her gaze toward the scroll. "This Array really isn't simple," she said softly. "Even I can sense danger from it…"
Holding the black array scroll, Liu Bai smiled faintly. "Your instincts are correct. If I'm not mistaken, this formation has already reached the Earth-grade level. Its power should be enough to contend with a Fifth Grade Sovereign."
As soon as he said that, Jiu You remained calm, but Liu Zong was startled.
"Sovereign? You're saying the formation within that scroll can rival a Sovereign?"
A Sovereign! Such beings were so far beyond his imagination that even the thought of it sent chills down his spine.
"A Fifth Grade Sovereign," Liu Bai emphasized.
"If it were only to contend against ordinary Sovereigns, a Grade Six Human-tier Array would suffice. Some special Grade Five Spiritual Array could even do that. But this is a Grade Seven Array, already an Earth-tier array. Against lower-grade Sovereigns, it could kill them instantly."
He then shook his head slightly, a trace of regret flickering in his eyes. "Unfortunately, I can't fully unleash its power yet. At best, I can activate it at the level of a Grade Six Array. Against a First Grade Sovereign, I might barely hold my ground, but against a Second Grade, I'd surely lose."
A Second Grade Sovereign had already successfully condensed a Sovereign Celestial Body, making their combat strength several or even tenfold greater than those without one. That was why Liu Bai made such a cautious estimation.
But Liu Zong, hearing this, could only scream inwardly, This is already incredible!
If he had still been worried about the Liu Clan's relocation before, now every last trace of concern had vanished.
In fact, excitement had begun to bubble in his heart.
"By the way," Liu Zong said, "our Liu Territory's recent activities have been quite large. The outside world has likely guessed something. Should we bring Mu Bai and Yang'er back from the Northern Spiritual Academy as well?"
Liu Bai slapped his forehead. Right, he had completely forgotten about his two younger brothers.
"You're right. We should bring them back; otherwise, those two might start overthinking things," Liu Bai said with a smile. "Besides, it's about time I visit the Northern Spiritual Academy again."
As he spoke, his gaze shifted to Jiu You.
"Don't look at me," she said lazily. "I have no interest in running around with you. I just finished transcending a Heavenly Tribulation and haven't had a proper rest yet."
"In that case, go to my courtyard and pick a room to rest in. If you need anything, just ask—don't be polite."
Jiu You waved her hand dismissively, and in the next instant, her figure vanished from sight. Liu Bai sensed her presence reappear in his room, where she promptly lay down on his bed and fell asleep.
All he could do was shake his head helplessly before giving his second uncle a few more instructions. Then, he set off toward the Northern Spiritual Academy.
Returning to the place where he had trained for over a year, Liu Bai couldn't help feeling a surge of emotion.
Time had flown by, and the once ordinary young man who couldn't even sense Spiritual Energy had now become a genuine prodigy.
Though the word "prodigy" might deserve quotation marks, his system was part of his ability—just like some people possessed powerful, heaven-defying bloodlines. It was still his strength.
Walking along the familiar, tree-shaded path, he occasionally passed by students from the Northern Spiritual Academy.
Watching those fresh-faced teenagers filled him with a faint sense of nostalgia.
If judged by mental age alone, he had every right to feel such sentimentality. But paired with his youthful eighteen- or nineteen-year-old appearance, it did feel a little awkward.
"Wow, look, look! That senior is so handsome! Which class from the Heavenly Division is he from? Why haven't I seen him before?"
Naturally, the ones drawn to Liu Bai's appearance were a group of young girls.
But not every girl was easily charmed. Just as one of them squealed in admiration, and Liu Bai was secretly enjoying the compliment, another voice interrupted him.
"Tch, what's the use of being handsome? He looks so old and is still cultivating at the Northern Spiritual Academy. Must mean his talent isn't that great."
Liu Bai's expression turned a bit strange. These were all kids still at the Spiritual Sensing Stage, far too weak to sense his true cultivation. And admittedly, his age was considered old for this academy.
Turning his head, he saw a tall girl in a jet-black outfit, her long hair tied into a neat ponytail. She was glancing at him secretly while whispering to her friends.
Caught off guard by his sudden gaze, the girl froze. Their eyes met for an instant, and she immediately flushed bright red, bowing her head and nervously twisting the corners of her clothes in embarrassment.
"Oh no! He heard me!"
"Damn it, Xiao Qing! It's your fault! You made me look like an idiot!"
...
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