Chapter 292: Cross-dressing Big Shot

The night was vast, the stars and moon hung low, the undulating Longyuan Mountain Range resembled a sleeping dragon coiled here, a silver gauze covered it, giving a hazy, mysterious beauty.

Compared to the usually bustling mountains, Longyuan Mountain is now much quieter; most of the demons have already gone to famous mountains and rivers to station.

There are also a few who remain in the mountains in secluded cultivation; later, some great demons will leave the mountains to go to the Cultivation Academy to teach humans; the monsters staying in the mountains are few, all beings who dislike bustle.

Ye Qin gazed up at the deep sky above, his expression thoughtful.

"I don't know how long it's been; how is the construction of the Signal Tower going?"

"Nowadays, the heavenly and earthly calamity has not yet arrived; the great demons stationed in all directions also report nothing unusual; everything looks peaceful."

"But Ye Qin knows well that beneath a calm surface often lurk undercurrents; he must therefore muster his utmost spirit to cope."

"It has been a while since Ye Qin last explored the universe; he has made up his mind to go again for a thorough discussion, after all, knowing oneself and the enemy ensures victory in every battle."

"After Ye Qin prepared, he got ready to set out; now he is at the Three Flowers Gathered at the Crown realm, frequently going to the universe is impossible and would consume great energy, but an occasional trip is still fine."

"Ye Qin plans to go this time using his Nascent Soul, after all his physical body is still inconvenient, and for his appearance he will still use Longling."

"Spiritual energy nurtured the surroundings; as Ye Qin's soul entered meditation, it soon enveloped his whole body, a hazy aura spread all around, but shortly Ye Qin felt the world spin, with a sensation of his soul leaving his body."

"A beam of light from the firmament fell upon Ye Qin, as if guiding him onto the path to the heavenly steps."

"The surrounding scenery changed rapidly; when Ye Qin came to, the once lush forest had vanished, replaced by boundless darkness."

"The darkness of the universe differs from that of the mortal world, giving an extremely desolate feeling; the surroundings are also empty, with no scenery, as if only his existence fills heaven and earth."

"Ye Qin released his spiritual power, sensing no trace of life's aura, nor any fluctuation."

"It seems this is an abandoned planet."

"Ye Qin continued forward; the surroundings showed no change, and if he weren't confident in his sense of direction, he would have thought he was almost lost, for wherever he went the scenery was the same."

"After an unknown amount of time, specks of starlight spread out, the unchanging darkness finally changed, the Milky Way flowed slowly, and around were stars big and small, but it was not the place he sought."

"After all, the universe is truly vast; wanting to explore it completely is nothing but a pipe dream."

"Ye Qin seemed to think of something; with a thought, as white light flashed before his eyes, a nearly transparent jade tablet of unknown material appeared before him."

"The jade tablet was engraved with mysterious symbols and text, looking extremely odd; this was given to him by a female cultivator he met in the universe earlier, who said it could be used to contact himself."

"Ye Qin infused a strand of divine sense into it; the jade tablet soon rippled with shimmering light, and as the light flickered, Qinghuan's face also appeared within—such a method is truly miraculous."

"Upon seeing clearly that it was Ye Qin, Qinghuan first froze, then quickly smiled: 'I wondered who was contacting me; turns out it's you, long time no see—where have you been all this time? I even thought you forgot this friend of mine.'"

"Faced with Qinghuan's complaint, Ye Qin produced the excuse he had prepared earlier."

"He continued to pose as a cross-dressing big shot, to get close and act as an insider."

"I recently had a sudden insight, so I found a secluded place to go into closed-door cultivation; because things happened suddenly, I didn't have time to contact you."

"Qinghuan did not doubt his words, nor could she imagine that the other party was a cross-dressing big shot."

"For cultivators like them, closed-door cultivation is common; it can last a few years, or even ten-odd years, even a hundred years."

"Ye Qin's situation is really nothing remarkable."

"Qinghuan curiously asked: 'Then do you have any gains?'"

"Ye Qin nodded: 'Still fairly lucky; my cultivation level rose a small step, not bad.'"

"The two exchanged pleasantries; their originally somewhat unfamiliar relationship grew close again, and Ye Qin went with the flow, saying: 'Where are you now?'"

"Qinghuan sighed, somewhat helplessly: 'I don't have your good luck; lately I've been wandering around looking for my own opportunity.'"

"If that's the case, then I'll go find you."

"Qinghuan had no suspicion: 'Sure, anyway I'm just idle; I'll send you the coordinates.'"

"Her image then faded from the jade tablet, and immediately a small arrow appeared, pointing the way forward for Ye Qin."

"With the jade tablet's guidance, Ye Qin could find Qinghuan more easily, though he never expected such a tiny jade tablet to have this function."

"When Qinghuan first gave him the jade tablet, she only said it could be used to contact himself, mentioning nothing else; only now does Ye Qin realize its benefits."

"It's somewhat like an earthly cell phone, only more advanced; it can be used even without signal, as long as one injects spiritual power."

"Perhaps he could later promote it on Earth."

"If the Signal Tower is built, its radiation impact on Earth will certainly be great; then the magnetic field will become disordered, and certainly many electronic devices will fall into malfunction."

"If such a Dharma Implement existed, that would be a good thing."

"Ye Qin pondered while hurrying, and soon arrived at the place where Qinghuan was."

"The place where Qinghuan was is a planet full of water vapor, not large in area, the surroundings very damp; as soon as Ye Qin landed, he felt a coolness blowing over him."

"Around, many small water droplets condensed into tiny clusters, floating in midair; the scene was quite wondrous."

"Such small planets are common throughout the universe; although they have a faint spiritual energy, they are not long-lasting and will soon dissipate, because they lack the conditions to store or nurture spiritual energy."

"These spiritual energies drift from elsewhere; thus the lifespan of such planets is also very short, compared to the planets where ancient immortal cultivations civilizations live in the universe, they are like mayflies, giving a feeling of fleeting life."

"Qinghuan was idly poking those tiny water droplets with her hand; from far away she sensed Ye Qin's presence and kept waving at him, saying:"

"You always appear and disappear mysteriously; wanting to find you is really not easy."

"Sorry, I originally wanted to tell you."

"Never mind."

"Qinghuan waved her hand indifferently: 'Those things are in the past; I'm bored wandering alone here, having you keep me company is also nice.'"

"Speaking, she casually took hold of Ye Qin's hand, making his body jerk slightly, but he did not pull away, lest he expose himself."

"Although Qinghuan looks aloof, once truly acquainted one finds she is very talkative; the two chatted a lot along the way."

"Most of it was her speaking, Ye Qin listening, carefully screening for the information he needed."

"It also thanks to his deceptive appearance; otherwise, if it were someone else, Qinghuan would definitely not be like this."

"I recall this place should not be far from the Barbaric Wasteland."

"Actually Ye Qin was just speaking nonsense; he is not familiar with this place at all, merely trying to bring up the next topic, and he didn't expect that his random guess would actually hit the mark."

"Qinghuan nodded: 'Right, why did you suddenly ask about that?'"

"Ye Qin casually brought up: 'Nothing much, I just suddenly thought of it; you earlier said the Heaven Sect was building a Signal Tower there, so I suppose now—'"

Before he finished speaking, Ye Qin keenly sensed a fluctuation of Spiritual Power coming from afar.

Only a speck of light suddenly appeared from the dark universe, speeding toward the northwest.

That golden light hung like a morning star, as if a switch; soon several beams followed, clearly visible against the dark backdrop.

At first glance, it resembled fireworks blooming, a spectacular sight.

Ye Qin blurted out, "What is this?"

Qing Huan followed his gaze and said, "You were just talking about the Heavenly Sect's Signal Tower, weren't you? These are Heavenly Sect people."

"Let's go take a look too."

Qing Huan didn't quite understand why Ye Qin was so concerned about the Signal Tower and such, but she didn't want to dampen his enthusiasm, so she spoke up.

"We can just glance from afar; those Heavenly Sect folks are overbearing—I don't like dealing with them."

Ye Qin nodded, and the two set off toward the source of the light.

Near the edge of the universe's wilderness, scattered stars lay about, most desolate, occasionally a few bearing spiritual aura.

Few cultivators set foot here; only occasional passersby come, for the spiritual aura is thin and there's nothing to gain—it's basically barren land.

But at this moment, on one of those planets, many Heavenly Sect disciples were shuttling back and forth.

Qing Huan and Ye Qin came to a nearby spot, concealed themselves, and did not approach further.

At that distance the Heavenly Sect disciples would hardly notice them, yet Ye Qin and Qing Huan could see the scene in the distance.

When Ye Qin saw clearly, he froze on the spot.

In midair countless Heavenly Sect disciples rode strange-looking Dharma Implements, loaded with various materials—some like ore, some like steel—nameless things.

Ye Qin had never seen such items; he guessed they were unique to their civilization.

Heavenly Sect people piled the materials on the ground, then drove the Dharma Implements away; the materials all emitted a faint spiritual aura, clearly not ordinary objects.

The remaining disciples on the ground sorted the materials by category, then began to assemble them, each working orderly on their task.

Beside them stood a huge iron frame, entwined with five black lights that flickered incessantly; if placed on Earth it would be at least the size of Mount Tai.

Many people walked to and fro above, while ground-level items were sent up through a transparent transport pipe.

Within the transport pipe a formation seemed to exist; a flash of light would convey anything inside elsewhere.

Besides that, he noticed a large horn‑shaped object resembling a giant flower bud, blooming in the universe and listening to distant sounds.

He paid no mind to the fact that this thing had just a skeleton—a mere mold—nothing filled inside, its purpose unknown.

Ye Qin closely examined the disciples' Dharma Implements, which resembled small Earth‑craft cabins, and couldn't help remarking, "I don't know what this is, but it looks quite unique."

Qing Huan gave him a strange look: "A flying shuttle—haven't you seen one before?"

It turned out the thing was called a flying shuttle.

Ye Qin rubbed his nose, gave an embarrassed smile: "You know, I often retreat into seclusion, so I rarely encounter these."

He had told Qing Huan this when they first met.

Qing Huan sighed helplessly: "Everyone has their own cultivation way, but constantly shutting yourself in isn't right—you should go out more."

Qing Huan had seen many who cultivated in seclusion, but someone like Ye Qin, utterly ignorant of the outside world, was a first for her.

Still she harbored no doubt; the universe is vast, full of wonders, and the great star realms rarely interact, so meetings are scarce.

But who would have thought Ye Qin actually came from that blue‑green planet near the Wilds, knowing nothing of interstellar affairs?

Everyone believed the Wilds held no advanced life—if any, only lowly forms—so Qing Huan never doubted Ye Qin's origin.

Ye Qin scrutinized the cultivators' attire, which was distinctive—some wore long robes, some short, presumably for ease of work.

The garments were silver‑toned fabric, unknown make, shimmering with iridescent light, emitting a faint glow that gave a high‑tech impression.

From the Heavenly Sect people's clothing and Dharma Implements, they didn't resemble the ancient, traditional cultivators Ye Qin imagined; a hint of technology was mixed in.

For example, this flying shuttle, the Signal Tower, plus the communication jade tablet Qing Huan gave him earlier.

But looking at the big picture, they still follow the traditional cultivation path, though technology hasn't been abandoned—it merely aids cultivation.

"I didn't expect the Heavenly Sect to move so quickly."

Qing Huan's voice pulled Ye Qin's thoughts back to reality; his expression shifted slightly, and he then noticed amid the busy Heavenly Sect disciples a structure like an earth altar already standing.

The structure was pitch‑black, square and solid, covering a huge area; each corner held a gem‑like object emitting strong spiritual‑power fluctuations, yet the top remained empty, making it seem abrupt.

When Ye Qin had looked before, this wasn't there; now it seems the Heavenly Sect has finished the Signal Tower's foundation and is erecting the tower shaft.

Ye Qin's complexion turned subtle,

At that pace, even halfway through construction wouldn't take long, but merely completing the foundation has already affected Earth.

As construction proceeds, the impact will likely grow worse!

The Signal Tower's radiation will probably blanket everything; at that point Earth will face a true catastrophe, and we must also worry whether the Heavenly Sect might relocate the whole planet for the signal's sake.

Either way, humanity's situation can hardly improve.

Thinking of this, Ye Qin's face darkened at once.

Qing Huan noticed Ye Qin's expression and asked strangely, "What's wrong? Your face just turned awful."

Ye Qin shook his head. "Nothing."

As they talked, several Heavenly Sect disciples not far off seemed to have spotted them, rushing toward the pair.

Qing Huan and Ye Qin exchanged a glance.

Oh no, we've been spotted!

Better to reveal ourselves now than wait for the Heavenly Sect to drag us out.

Qing Huan and Ye Qin stepped out from behind a boulder; Qing Huan clasped her hands and said, "Sorry, we were just passing by, noticed some movement, and took a curious look."

Several Heavenly Sect disciples glanced at each other, scanning Qing Huan and Ye Qin, a flicker of amazement crossing their faces.

Although cultivators who wash their marrow and absorb heaven‑earth spiritual aura are usually good‑looking, few are ugly; yet appearances like Qing Huan's and Ye Qin's are still rare.

Seeing they were two female cultivators who had stepped forward, and hearing Qing Huan's words, they did not make things difficult.

"You don't know this is Heavenly Sect territory, do you? We are busy; idle people, leave quickly!"

"The areas around the wilderness are all unclaimed lands, but the Heavenly Sect forcibly marked them as its own territory; there's nothing to be done—who told them their sect is strong, so they act without restraint naturally."

"Moreover, the signal tower nearby was indeed built with their funding, so no one can say anything."

"Qing Huan and Ye Qin also didn't want to cause trouble, quickly nodding and saying, 'Okay, we'll leave right away.'"

"Several disciples also didn't linger here; after they spoke, they left. Once they had gone far, Qing Huan's expression changed instantly: 'Pah, really shameless—how did it become their territory?'"

"From Qing Huan's previous behavior, it can be seen that she doesn't have much goodwill toward the Heavenly Sect, and she looks down on all their actions."

"Ye Qin comforted, 'Alright, let's go, to avoid causing more trouble.'"

"He actually wanted to go up and examine the signal tower closely, or see if he could find a way to damage it to slow the Heavenly Sect's progress, but Ye Qin merely glanced a few times and gave up that unrealistic idea."

"Not to mention the Heavenly Sect's numerous members, which basically leaves Ye Qin no chance to strike; even disguising as a disciple to sneak in is impossible."

"Moreover, this is in outer space; he is not familiar with this place at all. If a conflict arose with the Heavenly Sect, they would have many people and great strength, their realms profound, able to roam the cosmic frontiers at will, while he alone fights a lone battle—obviously only he would suffer."

"Even if things went too deep, once the true form of the Investigation Bureau is exposed, they would directly hunt him down to Earth—that would be a catastrophe."

"Cannot be rash."

"Ye Qin quickly rejected that idea."

"Some things may truly be fated; even he cannot change them."

"To avoid Qing Huan's suspicion, Ye Qin again wandered with her around several small planets for a few rounds before preparing to say goodbye."

"I don't like staying outside for long; having stayed this long, it's also time to prepare to leave."

"Qing Huan nodded to show understanding, 'That works; let's keep in touch from now on.'"

"Ye Qin would indeed like to stay in touch, but his coordinates are on Earth, making it hard to guarantee Qing Huan won't notice; to be safe, next time they contact, it might only be in outer space."

"But she would naturally not tell Qing Huan these words."

"After saying goodbye to Qing Huan, Ye Qin went to a secluded, uninhabited spot, confirmed there were no other cultivators around and no disturbances, then flew to Earth, preparing to return to Longyuan Mountain."

"As Ye Qin's receding back was watched, Qing Huan stood there lost in thought, a different light flickering in her eyes, murmuring to herself, 'This Little Friend Longling, something's off…'"

"(End of Chapter)"