Chapter 344: Hu Li Has a License

The strange otherworld mentioned by Yuanling Zhenren had thoroughly ignited Yu Sheng's curiosity.

And the former certainly did not decline Yu Sheng's request.

"That is definitely no problem; if you are willing to lend a hand, that is even better. I can arrange a Immortal Boat to send you and Xuanche to the 'Taiyou' site immediately, but... you have come from afar as guests, and haven't even rested here before rushing off to that otherworld, which makes me appear impolite."

As Yuanling Zhenren spoke the latter part, his expression became somewhat awkward, but Yu Sheng didn't mind at all: "Hey, no need to say that. Once my curiosity gets the better of me, I can't sit still, and going over there to move around counts as digesting my food."

But speaking of this, he paused, suddenly remembering there was still an unlucky soul who had been brought along in a muddled state at the scene, so he turned his head to look at his seemingly bewildered great-nephew.

"You shouldn't come with us," Yu Sheng thought for a moment, "you haven't even passed your probation period yet; following us to a place like that could easily lead to sudden death... Speaking of which, how about I just open a door for you and send you back?"

"Ah, that's not necessary," Zheng Zhi reacted quickly, waving his hands hurriedly, "I'll just stay inside the station; it's a good chance to familiarize myself with the equipment and such there. Don't worry about me."

As he spoke, he scratched his face again and added a sentence somewhat embarrassedly: "I'm actually quite interested in this place; it's the first time in my life I've traveled so far—let me stay here for two days, okay? Ah, of course, if Brother Yu thinks it's troublesome, then forget it, and I'll head back to the Borderland first."

"That's not troublesome at all," Yu Sheng thought for a moment, then turned to say to Yuanling Zhenren, "So I'll entrust my friend here to your care?"

Yuanling Zhenren smiled: "Naturally, that is possible."

After arranging for Zheng Zhi to rest on the Guanyun Terrace, Yu Sheng and his group followed Yuanling Zhenren and Xuanche to the "Immortal Boat Platform" behind the Queyun Palace.

Along the way, Yu Sheng followed Yuanling Zhenren through great halls and across suspended corridors; the magnificent scenery within the grand immortal palace "Queyun Palace," the highest immortal palace of the Thousand Peaks Spirit Mountain, left him deeply shocked—as the "face" of one of the most influential factions within an interstellar power, this magnificent architecture built atop the mountain peak was almost part of the Shanfeng itself; the continuous pavilions and towers, expanded and perfected over a thousand years, in Yu Sheng's view, had even surpassed the concept of "man-made structures," resembling more a kind of "natural megastructure" standing amidst the mountain ranges, a point that was especially shocking when he looked down from the heights of Queyun Palace.

The continuous mountain gates, stairs, towers, and palace complexes stretched from the foot of the mountain all the way to the summit, piercing through clouds and mist in between, ascending layer by layer along the mountain's contours; merely looking at this, the four words "Ladder to Ascend to Immortality" seemed like some kind of intense "will" directly imprinted on the mind of the witness.

Even little doll Irene, who was usually so thick-skinned, was stunned at this moment; she glanced down the mountain and exclaimed: "... How exhausting must it be to climb up from the foot of the mountain?!"

Hearing this, Yuanling Zhenren smiled, stroking his long beard: "No matter; there are elevators in the mountain."

The sigh that had just welled up in Yu Sheng's heart immediately dropped by half.

"It can't be helped; not everyone in the sect has the ability to fly through the sky, dodge earth, ride clouds, and climb mountains; newly admitted disciples sometimes have to come up to attend classes, and nowadays we don't uphold the old rules of the past where 'servant disciples were forbidden from ascending the mountain, and outer sect disciples were forbidden from entering the halls,'" Xuanche explained from the side, "and there are also merchants delivering goods up the mountain."

While speaking, Yuanling Zhenren stopped his steps and raised his hand to point.

"This is a small Immortal Boat used for shuttling between the Taixu Spirit Nucleus and Taiyou—it is a bit slower than the high-speed shuttles within the planetary system of your Borderland, but it is very lightweight and agile."

Yu Sheng immediately looked curiously in the direction the other person was pointing.

He saw that at the edge of the high platform in the clouds, a small boat radiating silver brilliance was hovering at the end of several stone steps; the small boat was about twenty or thirty meters long, shaped like a curved feather, covered by a layer of misty light curtain, and mysterious talismans could be seen faintly appearing and disappearing in the air at the bow and stern of the small boat, constantly emitting radiance like ripples in water, making the entire small boat seem as if it were floating on an invisible "water surface," truly marvelous.

Yu Sheng immediately felt his horizons had expanded, but amidst his surprise, he suddenly thought of something else and turned to look at Xuanche: "Don't immortals also ride swords to fly? And you can fly without riding a sword yourself—without an Immortal Boat, can you fly to 'Taiyou' yourself?"

"Yes, I can," Xuanche nodded, but immediately added, "but I only ride a sword to ascend the moon when occasionally tempering myself—after all, it's quite tiring. Speaking of which, our Taixu Spirit Nucleus also has competitions in this regard, held once every two years, where the content is to ride a sword from the Taixu Spirit Nucleus and ascend the three stars of Taiyou, Hengming, and Chang'an within a day and night; I even participated and luckily achieved a high ranking."

Yu Sheng thought for a moment and realized this seemed to be the marathon of the cultivation world...

And just then, he suddenly felt someone tug at his sleeve.

Turning his head, he saw the fox girl who was about to speak but held back.

"Benefactor," Hu Li lowered her voice, speaking somewhat hesitantly, "I don't want to ride this."

Yu Sheng was stunned: "... Ah?"

He rarely saw Hu Li act willfully, so he was quite surprised at this moment.

But soon he knew what the girl was thinking.

"I want to run myself~" the fox girl looked up at him, her eyes gradually lighting up, "I'll follow behind this 'Immortal Boat' and run myself! ~~"

Yu Sheng was shocked, looking at Hu Li and then at the "space shuttle" not far away, and only spoke after a long while: "... What the heck?! Can you even catch up to this?"

"Probably? I don't know how fast it is, but I can go at full speed in space!" Hu Li said happily, pointing up at the sky, "There's nothing blocking the sky here, unlike valleys or border cities; I haven't run 'outside' for so long! Benefactor~~"

A fox demon shaking her big tail in front of him and acting spoiled was indeed something Yu Sheng couldn't quite handle, but amidst his wavering, he felt a trace of shock, because only now did he suddenly realize one thing—

"Hu Li, you haven't been holding back and not running to your heart's content, have you?! You didn't run enough when frolicking in the valley either?!"

Hu Li nodded, but immediately shook her head, explaining as if afraid Yu Sheng would feel sad: "I usually run happily too, it's just... not at full speed..."

Yu Sheng: "..."

Hu Li loved running, loved it very, very much, second only to eating.

But now he realized he had always underestimated the "level" of this fox demon's "running"; he thought giving Hu Li a valley to run freely in was enough, but he didn't expect this honest girl had never actually run to her heart's content!

"Uh, then, okay?" Realizing the crux of the matter, Yu Sheng's face twitched involuntarily, but immediately what came to his mind was the two "Space Traffic Regulations" books he hadn't finished reading yet; he subconsciously looked at Yuanling Zhenren beside him, "Let her run? What standards do you use in this near-star region to classify motorized pedestrians and non-motorized pedestrians?"

Yuanling Zhenren also seemed not to expect this turn of events; he stood still for a while before reacting, speaking with a strange expression: "That depends on what form she ascends in; as far as I know, the fox demon clan..."

Before the old man finished speaking, he saw Hu Li dart forward, "swish" transforming into a giant nine-tailed fox in an instant, turning her head to stare straight at him.

Yuanling Zhenren: "..."

After a moment of stiffness, Yuanling Zhenren raised his hand and beckoned; a beam of brilliant light rushed from the void, and a jade plaque radiating a lustrous silver light appeared in his hand.

"... Temporary Motorized Immortal Driving Permit," he handed the jade plaque to Yu Sheng, "Although fox demons are 'spirit beasts,' in the Taixu Spirit Nucleus they are ranked alongside immortals; have her carry this jade plaque with her at all times. Additionally, you must take charge of directing her; do not fly dangerously; it is best to always follow behind the Immortal Boat."

"Understood, understood, thank you," Yu Sheng nodded quickly in gratitude, took the jade plaque, and approached Hu Li, but looked at the giant nine-tailed fox with a frown, "Where should I hang this for you?"

Hu Li lowered her head: "Chin, chin, find a tuft of fur to tie it with~~ Don't worry, Benefactor; I'll protect it with my body-guarding spiritual energy; it won't be blown off by the wind~"

Yu Sheng didn't know what to say at this moment; he just felt this world was truly wonderful; he had come from the Borderland to this planet where cultivators gathered, hadn't even had time to encounter classic elements like miraculous treasures, yet the first thing he did was put a temporary license plate on his own fox immortal girl—the person involved was even hopping around happily.

"Benefactor, will you run with me?" Hu Li, having gotten her license plate, happily lowered her head (this one action almost knocked Yu Sheng to the ground), her two eyes focusing on her nose as she looked at Yu Sheng, "I'll take you along~ I'll protect you with my body-guarding spiritual energy."

"Nonsense!" Yu Sheng rolled his eyes at the fox demon, "I definitely have to go with you—that's your driving permit; what I hold is the driver's license!"

"Oh."

Yu Sheng immediately glanced again at Irene, who was dawdling and trying to sneak onto the Immortal Boat, and Luna, who was still standing obediently beside them: "Do you two want to come along..."

But before he finished speaking, he saw Irene shoot up onto the Immortal Boat like a little rocket, shouting as she went: "I don't want to! That silly fox only knows how to protect you when she runs!"

Luna stood in place, looked at Yu Sheng, then looked at the direction Irene had run off to, appearing somewhat at a loss for a moment.

"Forget it, you go with Irene onto the Immortal Boat too," Yu Sheng, seeing this, could only helplessly wave his hand, "I'm not comfortable with her going alone; she's clumsy and pokes around everywhere; I'm afraid she'll get stuck in a chair and no one will notice."

Luna nodded and went to chase after Irene as Yu Sheng instructed.

A moment later, Xuanche rode the Immortal Boat and slowly ascended into the sky.

Hu Li found an open spot on the platform, stretched her four legs hard to yawn, and moved her body; the nine tails behind her bloomed like a sword graveyard.

Fox fire gradually filled her.

Accompanied by a hum, the Immortal Boat transformed into a streak of flowing light.

Nine fox flames erupted with a boom, and the silver-white figure shot straight into the sky—more fiercely than the Immortal Ark's launch.

Yuanling Zhenren stood beside the Immortal Ark platform, watching that otherworldly fox spirit with nine propulsion flames shoot skyward, accelerate in the blink of an eye, and catch up to the Immortal Ark that had launched a step earlier; only after a long while did he snap out of the shock from that impact.

"Truly an otherworldly fox," the old man wiped his face, filled with emotion, "... the Immortal Mobility License seems to have been too conservative."

(End of this chapter)