Chapter 761: Elder Yi Shang

Gan Shijian had just finished speaking when Ding Huan walked over: "Gan Shijian, I never expected you'd come to my sect to congratulate me—thank you."

Gan Shijian stood up, flabbergasted: "Ding Daoyou, is, is it really you..."

He had already recognized Ding Huan, yet still couldn't believe it.

When they first saw Ding Huan, wasn't he only at the early stage of Divine Lord? How could his cultivation now be completely beyond comprehension?

"Chang Qian of the Nirvana Sacred Dao Palace greets Lord Ding, congratulating the founding of the Blue Star Academy and adding glory to the Dunyi Divine Realm." Chang Qian quickly bowed.

Ding Huan laughed heartily, about to speak, when Jia Baihe's envoy Chang Chang Tingxi, whom he had previously tricked, spoke again:

"Lord Ding, the Great True Divine Dao has never abandoned its desire to destroy our Jia Baihe Sword Dao, and other sects have allied with the Great True Divine Dao.

The Blue Star Academy is a top-tier sect of the Dunyi Divine Realm—please, Lord Ding, uphold justice for Jia Baihe Sword Dao. Don't let them run rampant and destroy the peace of the Dunyi Divine Realm."

Ding Huan was stunned by Chang Chang Tingxi's words: What?

You want me to uphold justice for Jia Baihe Sword Dao? I'd be doing you a favor if I didn't kick you a few times and let you perish sooner.

You little brat heard my Dao words and now you're using them to manipulate me.

Chang Qian said nothing—he knew the "other sects" Chang Chang Tingxi mentioned were those led by his own Nirvana Sacred Dao Palace.

His Nirvana Sacred Dao Palace had long wanted Jia Baihe Sword Dao destroyed; he came to the Blue Star Academy merely to assess its strength.

Regardless of the Blue Star Academy's power, Jia Baihe Sword Dao was destined to be wiped out.

But now, the Blue Star Academy's strength far exceeded his Nirvana Sacred Dao Palace's estimates.

If the Blue Star Academy truly has a Seventh-Transcendence Saint, even one would be enough to obliterate Nirvana Sacred Dao Palace a thousand times over.

Originally, they didn't need to care about the Blue Star Academy's opinion when eliminating Jia Baihe Sword Dao—but now it was different.

Now, to destroy Jia Baihe Sword Dao, they must consider the Blue Star Academy's stance.

Chang Chang Tingxi's plea to the Blue Star Academy deeply worried Chang Qian.

The Nirvana Sacred Dao Palace had Gan Shijian on good terms with Ding Huan—this had been extremely advantageous.

If the Nirvana Sacred Dao Palace and the Blue Star Academy clashed over whether to destroy Jia Baihe Sword Dao, it would bring catastrophic consequences to Nirvana Sacred Dao Palace.

Ding Huan waved his hand: "Today is a grand day for the Blue Star Academy—let's discuss other matters after our founding ceremony concludes.

By the way, has the Great True Divine Dao's envoy arrived?"

Ding Huan truly wanted to inquire about Si Anlun—this kid wasn't simple. If he could trick him, he absolutely would.

Zhuo Hong spoke from the side: "Shao Sect Master, the Great True Divine Dao didn't come."

Ding Huan's expression darkened instantly.

He was thinking of Elder Yi Shang.

This woman was likely a Third-Transcendence Saint. Zhuo Hong had said before that Zi Feng Sacred Valley was a subordinate sect of Jia Baihe Sword Dao; this battle left it severely wounded, nearly to the point of annihilation.

How could a subordinate sect like Zi Feng Sacred Valley have a Third-Transcendence Saint? And how could it nearly be wiped out?

Only top-tier major sects possess Third-Transcendence Saints.

Wait—this woman's spatial laws seemed strangely unstable. Was she injured? That didn't seem right.

Chang Chang Tingxi of Jia Baihe Sword Dao, seeing Ding Huan's dark expression, was overjoyed inside.

If the Blue Star Academy moved against the Great True Divine Dao, Nirvana Sacred Dao Palace wouldn't dare touch Jia Baihe Sword Dao.

The Blue Star Academy had Seventh-Transcendence Saints.

"Lord, perhaps the Great True Divine Dao is still en route—our sect's teleportation array isn't built yet, so many arrived after wasting excessive time."

Zhuo Hong wasn't sure if Ding Huan's dark expression was real, but she naturally had to give her Sect Master a face-saving exit.

Ding Huan nodded: "Mm. Zhuo Hong, represent our sect and treat all these Dao friends well."

After speaking, Ding Huan looked at the representatives of the visiting sects: "Ding Huan again thanks you all for traveling countless miles to attend the founding of the Blue Star Academy.

I, Ding Huan, have said it—you are all friends of the Blue Star Academy. Should you ever need our sect's support, just come and ask. I have matters to discuss with our Supreme Elder—I must take my leave."

The other sect representatives naturally rose and offered polite farewells.

Ding Huan sensed Elder Yi Shang wouldn't act—since her sect was a subordinate of Jia Baihe Sword Dao, and Jia Baihe's own representative dared not move, she wouldn't dare either.

But as soon as Ding Huan stepped out of Blue Star Divine City, his eyes sharpened—he immediately halted.

The next instant, a figure appeared before him.

Elder Yi Shang?

This woman clearly hadn't come to congratulate him.

Though he felt no killing intent from her, he still sensed all the trapping and killing arrays he had laid.

A Third-Transcendence Saint standing before him was no joke.

"Zi Feng Sacred Valley's Valley Master Elder Yi Shang greets Lord Ding. Might I trouble you for a moment of your time?"

Elder Yi Shang's tone and demeanor were extremely gentle, even fragile—nothing like the mindset of a Third-Transcendence Saint.

This made Ding Huan feel deeply strange.

How could someone who reached Third-Transcendence Sainthood be fragile? "Fine. Come with me to the Blue Star Academy." Ding Huan turned and walked toward the academy first.

The Blue Star Academy was likely the only sect to hold its founding ceremony outside its own grounds.

Fortunately, Blue Star Divine City was very close to the Blue Star Academy—calling them one and the same wasn't wrong.

After entering the sect, Ding Huan brought Elder Yi Shang to the Reception Hall and got straight to the point: "Elder Yi Shang, you're from Jia Baihe Sword Dao.

Our Blue Star Academy is built on the territory of Shengfu Dao, and even Shengfu Dao is our First Hall—surely you're not here for personal reasons?"

The implication: Blue Star Academy and Jia Baihe Sword Dao were enemies.

Elder Yi Shang bowed deeply and spoke slowly: "I've come to join the Blue Star Academy."

"What?" Ding Huan stared at Elder Yi Shang in shock.

You—a Third-Transcendence Saint—want to join my Blue Star Academy? And you're from the enemy sect?

"If Lord Ding refuses to accept me, I'll leave immediately and cause you no trouble whatsoever." Elder Yi Shang's voice was fragile, yet carried firm resolve.

Not a single mistake, not a single hair out of place, not a single flaw anywhere you look!

Ding Huan nodded: "Speak carefully, I'm listening. Remember, you need to make clear everything, including your origins and even the cultivation arts you practice."

If Elder Yi Shang had no issues, Ding Huan naturally also hoped Blue Star Academy would gain one more Third-Turn Saint.

After all, Old Jia was only putting on a show, and he was the one borrowing a tiger's might—except the tiger itself was fake.

He also made it clear that the more detailed Elder Yi Shang's account, the better; if Elder Yi Shang intended to conceal anything, it would mean this woman was not very reliable.

He did not want people of unknown origins.

Blue Star Academy's weakness would last at most a few decades. Old Jia had cultivation resources, so his growth would still be very fast.

"My name is Yi Shang. I come from another plane. Once I was only a maidservant. My master was a true Saint, called Saint Aunt Qingyi.

The Saint Aunt treated me very well, but for the sake of the one I loved I disobeyed the Saint Aunt's wishes many times. I had no face to keep following by the Saint Aunt's side.

Because he cultivated the Mortal Dao, I tried every way I could to perfect the Mortal Dao for him. In my eyes, he was just a foolish sort, wholly devoted to seeking the Dao…"

Ding Huan sensed that when Elder Yi Shang spoke to this point, her aura was somewhat unsteady, and he roughly understood that her state of mind had run into a problem.

"Until one day, he kicked me aside with one foot and told me he didn't want a filthy woman like me…"

Ding Huan was quite puzzled inside. This Elder Yi Shang had loved one person wholeheartedly—how had she become a filthy woman?

Elder Yi Shang explained on her own initiative: "That was because one day I saw another cultivator who practiced the Mortal Dao. His eyes looked very much like a meteor, and I thought he was the meteor's reincarnation for one life…"

"So you got together with another cultivator who practiced the Mortal Dao?" Ding Huan couldn't help but get into the gossip.

Elder Yi Shang shook her head: "At the time I was very eager to be with him, because I took him to be the meteor. But he knew he was not the meteor, and moreover he didn't think much of me…"

Ding Huan looked at this utterly unremarkable woman before him. If it were him, he wouldn't think much of her either.

He didn't know what she looked like before she had altered her form.

As if she knew Ding Huan's thoughts, Elder Yi Shang dispelled the alteration on her body.

A face of absolute beauty appeared before Ding Huan. Skin like snow, those beautiful eyes as if they could speak, long hair slipping down past her shoulders…

She was indeed a beautiful woman.

Only her gaze carried a kind of indescribable weariness.

"I tried hard to prove to him that I was innocent, but he simply didn't believe me."

Ding Huan gave a cold laugh: "For an existence who has cultivated to your level, to tell whether you're innocent or not should be very simple, right. I don't think he didn't believe you—rather, he finally found an excuse to kick you aside.

My words don't sound nice, but I can't think of a second explanation."

A self-mocking smile spilled from the corner of Elder Yi Shang's mouth: "I was only deceiving myself all along. Until one day the Calamity of Measure arrived, and he abandoned me without the slightest hesitation. I finally knew how much of a fool I'd been, wishing only for what I wanted.

What he didn't know was that I had a top-grade Plane-Breaking Talisman on me—one of the best treasures for evading the Calamity of Measure. I left that heartbreaking place and came to the Hunyi God Realm, and have been cultivating in the Hunyi God Realm ever since.

After I proved the Dao and became a Saint, I knew that to step into a higher realm, it would be best to have my own legacy. But my legacy was very ordinary, so I could only establish a sect—Purple Maple Saint Valley."

"Then how did your Purple Maple Saint Valley end up becoming an attached sect of Jia Baihe's Sword Dao?"

"Because when I was proving the Dao of the Fourth Turn, my state of mind ran into problems, and it was discovered by the Sect Master of Jia Baihe's Sword Dao, Fang Wuqiong. Fang Wuqiong schemed against me in secret and left a soul imprint on me."

"In other words, if Fang Wuqiong wants you dead, you can't live?" Ding Huan figured it out—this Fang Wuqiong was ruthless.

"Yes. In this great battle, I deliberately charged at the very front, deliberately inflicted wounds on myself, and then took advantage of the moment when Fang Wuqiong was healing to come to you here.

I thought Blue Star Academy might be able to stir the Dao Words of the Hunyi God Realm, and perhaps there would be a way to help me. Later I sensed the supreme strength of Elder Supreme Xing Jia, which further confirmed that coming here was the right choice."

After speaking, Elder Yi Shang looked at Ding Huan expectantly.

(Fellow Daoist, good night!)

(End of this chapter)