When the Gongshu father and daughter came downstairs, a Sedan Chair was already waiting in front of the building, with more than a dozen books flying around it.
The Book of Tear Stains was an outgoing sort. The moment it saw them, it began shouting, “Hurry up, hurry up! Stop dawdling—we’ve still got a long way to go.”
“You’re going too?”
“Of course. Actually, quite a few books wanted to come, but if we all went, we’d make too much of a commotion. So this time, they’ve arranged for a dozen or so of us to be the first group.”
The Sedan Chair set off.
A Sedan Chair was better than a car—you could see the scenery along the road through the curtains.
Gongshu Feiliang and [Bridge Ji] found the experience remarkably novel.
In the past, whenever they drove outside the city, they had always been extremely cautious, constantly on edge for fear of provoking some anomaly along the way.
But this time, the Sedan Chair swaggered down the road, with more than a dozen book anomalies crowded around them. They actually felt as though they had transformed into a major wilderness boss. They even saw several cars deliberately steer clear of them in the distance, which gave them an inexplicable thrill.
After following Chen Miemie for so long, the Sedan Chair had grown considerably stronger.
It was now faster than a car. While maintaining a steady ride, it could reach 160 kilometers per hour. And since it didn’t necessarily have to stick to the main roads, it could cross small ditches and slopes as well. In just three hours, they arrived at the mountaintop where the sea of clouds was located.
When they climbed out of the Sedan Chair, they found themselves surrounded by swirling mist.
“Where’s the base?” Gongshu Feiliang asked.
[Bridge Ji] also surveyed the surroundings. There wasn’t a soul in sight, nor could they see any buildings.
The books flapped their tiny wings and flew about curiously. They had never been here either and had no idea where to go.
The Sedan Chair began calling out, “Haomiao, Haomiao~”
After five or six calls, the sea of clouds churned. A hazy voice drifted out.
“Oh, you’ve arrived. Come on, get up onto the clouds.”
Several clumps of dense cloud floated over.
The two sedan bearers lifted the body of the Sedan Chair and stepped onto one of the clouds first.
“Come on, get on the clouds and follow us.”
Gongshu Feiliang cautiously stepped onto a cloud beside him. It was very soft; the spot beneath his foot sank down, though it still offered some support. It felt a little like walking through fluffy snow.
[Bridge Ji] was much more decisive. She jumped straight onto a small cloud. After it sank beneath her and wobbled, she shifted her body to regain her balance, then sat down on it.
“Dad, it works. Try to increase the contact area as much as possible. Sitting or lying down makes the sinking sensation much less noticeable.”
And so, the Sedan Chair, the two of them, and a flock of books—traveling on four clouds in total—floated together through the clouds toward the depths of the sea of clouds.
After drifting for a little over ten minutes, they reached their destination.
This was the core of the entire sea of clouds, where the Cloud-Feeding Flock lived.
Chen Miemie was squatting on the ground, holding a small shovel and gesturing aimlessly at the Mother of the Cloud-Feeders in the center.
“Chen Miemie, what are you doing?” [Bridge Ji] paddled her cloud over like a boat.
“You’re here. I obtained a [Banyan Heart]. They say it can be used to grow a [Cloud-Woven Banyan Tree], so I’m trying to figure out how to plant it.”
Gongshu Feiliang climbed down from his small cloud and stepped onto the island-like central area.
As an expert in bridge construction, he also had some knowledge of landscaping and garden design.
“I happen to know a little about that.”
Chen Miemie was overjoyed. She tossed aside her little shovel and leapt in front of Gongshu Feiliang.
“Great! Then I’ll leave this to you.”
Gongshu Feiliang smiled and agreed.
He was more than happy to take on these tasks. He wasn’t a combat-oriented ability user to begin with, so taking on more work would give him a chance to demonstrate his value. He had no ambitions for a position within the organization, but neither did he want to be looked down on or bullied.
Chen Miemie shifted position again and appeared in front of [Bridge Maiden].
“You came at just the right time. I have a major project here, and I’m planning to commission the Gongshu family.”
“What kind of project?”
Chen Miemie pointed around them.
“Look. This is the core area of our base. These several cloud islands are missing bridges to connect them, and your family happens to be expert in that field.”
Once the topic turned to his area of expertise, Gongshu Feiliang became serious. He carefully examined the clouds Chen Miemie had indicated.
“These clouds aren’t completely stationary, are they? If that’s the case, it would be best to build suspension bridges with some flexibility.
“Also, bridges aren’t the main structures of a complex. I don’t see any principal buildings here. What sort of style and overall tone are you looking for?”
Chen Miemie clapped his hands.
“As expected, you really should leave professional matters to professionals. The books we brought this time are all about architecture, and they’ll produce a complete set of architectural plans. My requirements are that the exterior be natural, simple, elegant, and imposing, while the interior should focus on comfortable living.”
Gongshu Feiliang continued asking questions. “Are there any budget restrictions? And are there any special requirements or taboos concerning the [mystical] aspects?”
After a thorough round of questions, Gongshu Feiliang had more or less understood Chen Miemie’s requirements.
Once they had finished discussing everything, [Bridge Maiden] raised a question from another angle.
“Chen Miemie, a great many of these requirements are based on your personal preferences. Are you sure you want this species’ base to be designed entirely according to your tastes?”
Gongshu Feiliang was startled as well, and hurriedly advised him, “That’s right. Why don’t you discuss it with Lord [Huangyi] before finalizing the plans?”
Chen Miemie pointed at the statue of the moon god Yellow Robe in the distance, then pointed at the divine halo that briefly flickered behind him.
“There’s no need to make things so complicated. You’re all one of us. With [Huangyi] away, I’m the one who makes the decisions. You don’t need to worry about that in the future.
“Also, for the budget, go directly to [Cicada]. As for construction, it wouldn’t be convenient for ordinary workers to come here, so you’ll have to direct the cloud demons yourselves.”
“Cloud demons?”
“That’s right—the [Delirious Cloud Demons]. They’re an anomalous species whose forms can change at will. They can’t speak, but they can understand simple instructions.”
Chen Miemie clapped his hands. The surrounding clouds churned and transformed into a group of humanoid clouds.
“Besides the books and the cloud demons, you’ll also have two assistants. They’re old friends of yours: [Soft-Hard Rain Bridge] and [Weightless Bridge Shadow].”
[Bridge Maiden] followed Chen Miemie’s gesture and looked in the direction he indicated. A large bank of mist dispersed, revealing the body of [Soft-Hard Rain Bridge].
She stared at it for several seconds.
“There’s only [Soft-Hard Rain Bridge] here. I don’t see the bridge’s shadow. Where’s [Weightless Bridge Shadow]?”
Gongshu Feiliang tugged at [Bridge Maiden]’s sleeve, signaling for her to look at her own shadow.
[Bridge Princess] turned around, and her heart nearly stopped.
Her figure had vanished, replaced by the shadow of an arched bridge.
The bridge-shaped shadow swayed in a twisted motion. “[Bridge Princess], hello. Let’s be friends. Chen Miemie said you could take me into the city to see bridges.”
[Bridge Princess] could only nod dumbly and say yes.
After finally calming down, she raised her second professional question. “For the entire base, I didn’t see any defensive structures in the architectural plans. What happens if there’s danger?”
“This is Haomiao’s core. If anything can make it all the way here, the buildings’ defenses would be meaningless anyway. Rather than defend ourselves, we’d be better off running.”
This was the second time the Gongshu father and daughter had heard the name “Haomiao.”
“May I ask—is Haomiao the name of this sea of clouds? Is it also an anomaly?” [Bridge Princess] made a bold guess.
“You’re very smart.”
“It’s so huge. It must be incredibly powerful, right?”
“Not bad. At present, its danger level is 8.”
[Bridge Princess] and Gongshu Feiliang: ...
That “not bad” was a little too good, wasn’t it? The thigh they’d latched onto this time was truly enormous.
e vast world of cultivation, where he becomes the master of the Heavenly Ruins Sacred Hall, a dying old man with barely a tenth of his former cultivation remaining. He is immediately confronted with a deadly crisis: his subordinates have rebelled, and his protectors are forcing him to abdicate. At the critical moment, the system descends from the heavens: [Ding! The host has been detected facing a life-or-death crisis. The system is now officially activated!] [As a gift, you have received the Supreme Beginner’s Pack and awakened the ultimate cheat: ten thousand years of pure cultivation essence every second!] Yin Tianjue: “Wait… ten thousand years of cultivation every second? That’s six hundred thousand years a minute, and in one day… I can’t even calculate it. Either way, I’m already invincible!” You’re a peerless prodigy rarely seen in ten thousand years? Sorry, I gain ten thousand years of cultivation every second. You’re an undying ancestor who has guarded a sacred land for countless ages? Sorry, I gain ten thousand years of cultivation every second. You’re the strongest chosen one, blessed with heaven-defying destiny? Sorry, I gain ten thousand years of cultivation every second. From this day forth, I have only one thing to say: “I gain ten thousand years of cultivation every second. Now, how exactly are you supposed to deal with that?”
ing gift was a patch of barren land, and disciples were all picked up along the way. He spent fifty years diligently building three "ramshackle little sects," thinking he could finally live a carefree life relying on his disciples. But right at the fifty-year mark, he was suddenly swept away by a spatial rift and exiled to the Chaos Desolation, the Disorderly Ruins. There was no spiritual energy there, only slaughter. Relying on the cultivation feedback from his disciples, Gu Changyuan hacked his way through a sea of blood for eleven hundred years. When the system finally fished him back out, he discovered the ramshackle little sects he'd built back then had developed a rather... unusual style. Hold on... I vanished for a thousand years, so how did my ramshackle little sects become holy lands?!
nd fell into a coma while saving his younger sister from an out-of-control car. He became a vegetable. No one knew that his consciousness had crossed into a world of cultivation. Over the course of sixty years, he began as the lowest kind of mine slave, struggling to survive amid mountains of corpses and seas of blood. By sheer chance, he eventually obtained the complete memories of a fallen Immortal King. Alchemy, medicine, formations, feng shui, physiognomy, artifact forging… Every great inheritance of the cultivation world was now his. But when he opened his eyes again, he discovered that ten full years had passed in the modern world. To pay for his treatment, his father had sold the family’s shop and house, leaving himself covered in lasting injuries and illness. His mother had cared for him day and night, and more than half of her hair had already turned white. His younger sister, who had been only fifteen back then, was now twenty-five. To help repay the family’s debts, she had been forced to lower her head and put on a smiling face in places of glittering lights and endless revelry. Only then did Chen Xuan understand that what he had lost was not merely ten years. He had lost the life his entire family was meant to have. The good news was that he had brought back the memories of an Immortal King’s entire lifetime. The bad news was that his soul had returned alone—his cultivation had not come with him. Spiritual energy was scarce, resources were depleted, and the modern world still had firearms, surveillance, capital, and laws. If he wanted to protect his family, break free from everyone’s control, and become truly invincible beneath the heavens, he would have to start all over again.
s the Eldest Princess, renowned for her cold and aloof detachment, became the most docile of lambs, obeying his every command without question. But when the final move was played on the chessboard, as Gu Chenghan seized everything and ascended on the verge of apotheosis, that very Princess suddenly embraced him from behind, her tone carrying a dependence never heard before: "Wait... you haven't yet... commanded me to love you forever." Gu Chenghan froze abruptly. She... hadn't been hypnotized?! ... [The Eldest Princess's Diary] [When my soul was extracted, becoming the sole spectator outside my own shell] [At first, there was overwhelming fury, until I saw] [How he used my sword to effortlessly shatter my inescapable doom] [How he wielded my authority to eradicate fatal conspiracies I had never even detected] [Like a deity, he rescued me from the deep mire I was trapped in] [If not for those annoying vixens, he and I would be a match made in heaven] [I think I am ill, gravely ill] [My deity should belong to me alone] ... "Hypnosis? Oh, it succeeded, my dear Master." "Only this time, it's my turn to hypnotize you."
