Chapter 115: Astonishing Everyone

And the Sect Leader, witnessing this scene, felt myriad emotions.

His gaze involuntarily fell on Yuan Yao, and a faint smile appeared at the corner of his mouth.

When he first heard that Little Yuan Yao was striving upward, he didn't believe it, for he, like everyone else, thought Little Yuan Yao would spend her life in peace and stability; he never expected she would change her nature.

The Sect Leader couldn't help but recall how she had recently earned merit for the sect, and his fondness for her grew even stronger.

He had temporarily set aside the Tai Wu Painting Scroll, and once he discovered who had stolen it, he would then make his plans.

Thinking that after so many days of investigation he still hadn't found the culprit behind it, he felt a momentary worry.

…

It took three days to travel from the Carefree Sect to the Heaven and Earth Domain.

"Yao Yao, we're almost there," Ying Wuji said softly.

Yuan Yao gathered her breath, slowly opened her eyes, and saw Ying Wuji's peerlessly handsome face; his phoenix eyes were gorgeous, and at this moment they held a gentle hue.

"We're here?!" Yuan Yao exclaimed in delight.

So fast?

She hurriedly sat up, then leaned over the edge of the boat to look down at the scenery below.

The sight before her left her feeling extremely shocked.

Gazing far into the distance, a round city as massive as a giant loomed into view. It was shrouded in immortal mist, exuding an indescribably grand and majestic aura.

"Is this the Heaven and Earth Domain?" Yuan Yao turned her head to look at Ying Wuji beside her.

"Yes." Ying Wuji replied with a smile.

Yuan Yao remarked, "It looks five times larger than our Carefree Sect."

"That's nothing special," Ying Wuji said lightly, his gaze falling on the distant round city.

Yuan Yao curiously asked, "Could there be a place even more grand and magnificent than this Heaven and Earth Domain in the world of cultivation?"

"Yes." Ying Wuji nodded.

Where?

Ying Wuji's expression paused slightly; he turned his head to see Yuan Yao's bright eyes, remained silent for two seconds, then slowly uttered three words: "Tian Jiaocheng."

"Tian Jiaocheng…" Yuan Yao pondered the place name, just about to ask what exactly this "Tian Jiaocheng" was——

"Those are the Heavenly Cloud Sect's spirit vessels," Ying Wuji said, gazing at the three spirit ships approaching from afar, each bearing the two large characters: Heavenly Cloud.

Yuan Yao's train of thought was interrupted, and she also lifted her gaze.

Indeed, she saw the Heavenly Cloud Sect's spirit vessels.

She suddenly recalled the two people she had met in the Wuduan Secret Realm—Weng Mingshu and Yan Haonan.

They both came from the Heavenly Cloud Sect; the former was the sect leader's daughter, the latter the Eldest Senior Brother.

Yuan Yao asked, "Junior Senior Brother, how many sects will participate in this Ninth Province Sect Grand Competition?"

Ying Wuji thought for a moment, "About seven hundred plus sects."

Yuan Yao: "!"

Seven hundred plus sects?!

Seeing her shock with her mouth slightly open and a smile appearing in his eyes, Ying Wuji said, "The Ninth Province altogether has thousands of sects, but only over seven hundred are qualified to participate in the Sect Grand Competition."

"That's not many," he added.

Hearing this, Yuan Yao felt her knowledge was still too shallow.

She turned her head and glanced back.

She noticed that almost all her fellow sect brothers and sisters were sitting in meditation, and she was momentarily stunned.

It turned out her senior brothers and sisters were also this diligent!

Her gaze lowered, and she saw Cang Li just three steps away.

Just then, Cang Li suddenly opened his eyes; a fleeting chill flashed in his depths, a smile appeared on his fair, handsome face as he pressed his palms together and said, "Why are you two gentlemen staring at me like that? Could it be that you think I, Cangaotian, am too handsome, so you can't look away?"

"Alas, being too handsome is my fault, Cangaotian."

"It's not your fault."

"Really."

He slightly tilted his head, lifted his chin, and showed only a side profile to Yuan Yao and Ying Wuji, asking, "Did you see my brother's melancholy?"

Yuan Yao, Ying Wuji: "……"

"No melancholy, just silliness," Yuan Yao said, the corner of her mouth twitching.

Cang Li stood up, patted his clothes, pressed his palms together, and lamented, "My apologies, my apologies—I, Cangaotian, am still too handsome, actually inviting condemnation from a certain patron."

Yuan Yao helplessly said, "Third Senior Brother, you really look like a monk or a Daoist."

These words made Cang Li's expression slightly tighten; he pressed his lips together, as if recalling something, and the smile on his face vanished completely.

"I…"

Cang Li lowered his eyes.

"Actually…"

He suddenly lifted his gaze, his eyes shining, and spoke solemnly: "I am the third disciple beneath the Holy Buddha, Cangaotian! I was born for the peace of the cultivation world—I am the heaven‑chosen son, the Buddha‑chosen disciple, the earth's child, and… cough cough…"

Before he could finish, Yuan Yao punched him in the chest.

Cang Li coughed violently.

After he recovered, he said, "Yuan Yao, are you trying to murder your senior brother?"

Yuan Yao gave a dry laugh, "Third Senior Brother, I saw you getting too carried away, afraid you'd go into qi deviation, so I punched you to snap you out of it."

Cang Li stared at Yuan Yao with a resentful little look.

Just then——

The sect leader spoke up, letting all disciples gather on the spirit boat's deck.

Those disciples who had been meditating and cultivating all rose to their feet.

The sect leader's voice sounded slowly: "In half an hour, we will reach outside the Heaven and Earth Domain city. After we enter the Heaven and Earth Domain, people from the Heaven and Earth Domain will come to receive us."

The Heaven and Earth Domain also belongs to a certain power.

But what is special about it is that it does not participate in the Ninth Province's sect grand competition.

"Yes, sect leader!" the disciples replied.

Soon, the three spirit boats of the Carefree Sect stopped outside the Heaven and Earth Domain city gate.

And just as the Carefree Sect crowd disembarked from their spirit boats, the three spirit boats of the Heavenly Cloud Sect also docked outside the Heaven and Earth Domain city.

Yuan Yao had just stepped down from the spirit boat.

"Yuan Yao!" a shout came.

Everyone present was drawn by that shout, all looking up.

Only seen, on the spirit boat leading the Heavenly Cloud Sect, a green-clad girl stood at the front, her appearance lovely, her clothing and accessories indicating her extraordinary status; she excitedly raised her hand and waved at Yuan Yao.

Yuan Yao also saw Weng Mingshu, and a smile involuntarily appeared in her brows and eyes.

"Mingshu!" she waved in response.

Seeing this, Weng Mingshu seemed to have received great encouragement; she directly leapt down and hurried toward Yuan Yao.

The Carefree Sect crowd's expressions turned slightly surprised; the junior sister actually knew this Heavenly Cloud Sect's Eldest Miss?

When the Heavenly Cloud Sect crowd got a clear look at Yuan Yao's face, they couldn't help but show astonished admiration; the girl wore a white robe, her hair tied in a high ponytail with colorful ribbons, no makeup, her lips naturally red, her snow‑white skin even more eye‑catching in the sunlight, her slender waist making hearts tremble.

When she smiled, it felt as if all things in the world dimmed.

Many young disciples of the Heavenly Cloud Sect felt their hearts pounding wildly beneath their chests.

After they came to their senses, they couldn't help but speculate about her identity.

Yuan Yao…

How could this name sound both familiar and strange?

At this moment, Yuan Yao heard the 250 System's uninterrupted broadcast echoing in her sea of consciousness.

Weng Mingshu could not hide her excitement in her brows and eyes; she spoke extremely quickly, asking: "Yuan Yao, are you also going to participate in the sect grand competition?"