Flashback Scene

The successor of the Immortal Clan meant the completion of the inheritance, the continuation of the immortal path, and it meant...

Nascent Soul.

This realm, in the current cultivation world, only existed in the fragmented chapters of old papers.

It existed in the drunken sighs of older generation cultivators, and in the imaginations of every cultivator—both desired and feared.

In the face of a Nascent Soul, the current so-called power structures, sect grudges, and factional oppositions were nothing more than sandcastles built by children.

Seemingly intricate, but actually fragile.

Once the immortal path was completed, once someone could glimpse the threshold of the Nascent Soul through the complete inheritance, or even step into it.

Then the existing order... Gu Chengyin closed his eyes, sketching that picture in his mind:

The delicate balance between the Haoqi Alliance and the Valley of Villains would become laughable before an absolute gap in power.

The superficial divide between the righteous and demonic paths, barely maintained by factional wars, would be easily torn apart.

The taut string between the Great Luo Dynasty and the cultivation world would instantly snap.

Then would come the reorganization of everything.

Using power, not rules.

At that time, whether Great Luo would still be surnamed Luo would entirely depend on the mood of the Nascent Soul mighty figure.

Perhaps they would act like a superhuman when happy.

And a superhuman when unhappy too.

After all, the means of a Nascent Soul cultivator to move mountains and fill seas, although vaguely recorded in historical books...

The comment that one person can rival a nation always appeared repeatedly.

No wonder Emperor Luo tried to make him, the successor of the Immortal Clan, die on the inspection journey.

This was to snatch that banner of righteous cause before the great upheaval arrived.

Whoever held the key to unlocking the complete immortal path would have the right to define the rules of the new era.

For this, his, Gu Chengyin's, life, and even the turmoil it might cause, were all calculable costs in the overarching vision of an emperor.

Just like abandoning a pawn that had crossed the river in a game of chess, even if this pawn had already fought its way into the opponent's base.

But for the present, the Nascent Soul realm was too far away.

Gu Chengyin withdrew his wandering thoughts.

The most urgent matter was still the Azure Sword Sect.

As long as he could bring the entire Azure Sword Sect under his control, then the first person to knock on the door of the Nascent Soul...

Would definitely be him.

Gu Chengyin's gaze turned to the left.

From the time Jiang Jianli and Jiang Qingzheng entered the carriage until the conversation ended and they left, Lin Qingyan was like a relief sculpture blended into the background of the carriage.

Motionless, not even her eyelashes fluttering the slightest bit.

This silence was completely different from her appearance during her inner demon episode.

It revealed a deep sea-like calmness and unpredictability, as if those shocking words just now about the humble clan faction, factional wars, and Emperor Luo's overt plots and kingly ways...

Were to her nothing but a gentle breeze skimming over the water, unable to stir up half a ripple.

Aunt.

Lin Qingyan's long, slender eyelashes trembled slightly, like the last snowflake on a winter twig startled by the wind.

She then opened her eyes. Those eyes were still clear and calm, reflecting the fragmented spots of light coming through the carriage window.

Gu Chengyin indeed had a question lingering in his mind that needed confirmation.

How is your strength in the cultivation world?

Lin Qingyan looked at Gu Chengyin, her gaze lingering on his face for three breaths before her lips parted slightly:

In terms of realm alone, I cannot be ranked at the forefront.

A very plain opening, perhaps even a bit too humble.

Lin Qingyan stated in a flat tone:

There are many seniors with extraordinary talents. In the predicament of fragmented cultivation methods and a severed immortal path, they still forcibly cultivated to the middle, or even late stage of the Golden Core realm relying solely on pure talent and comprehension.

There was no envy, no admiration, and no unwillingness in her tone.

It was simply a fact, a fact widely known but deliberately ignored by many.

The waters of the Great Luo cultivation world had never been shallow.

Hearing this, Gu Chengyin's eyebrows suddenly shot up.

What did he just hear?

In such a harsh cultivation environment, where methods were fragmented, the path forward was severed, and even the spiritual energy of heaven and earth seemed to be covered by a veil.

Relying solely on talent and comprehension, they could climb to the late Golden Core stage?

This could no longer be described as genius.

They were monsters.

They were heroes who carved out a path of survival in desperate straits, igniting themselves to become torches in the darkness.

Emperor Luo was never facing a weak cultivation world.

But a group of lions that could still bloom with world-shocking brilliance in desperate situations.

These lions might be weak from hunger, or trapped by cages, but as long as they were given a sliver of opportunity, they could tear everything apart.

No wonder Emperor Luo wanted to lay out such a massive scheme.

No wonder he used overt plots instead of forceful suppression.

Because they couldn't be suppressed.

Just as Gu Chengyin was preparing to re-evaluate things.

The next second, Lin Qingyan's tone suddenly shifted.

Without deliberately emphasizing it, and without the slightest show-off, it naturally revealed an unquestionable confidence:

But in terms of combat power, I am invincible.

Gu Chengyin: ...

The carriage fell into a long silence.

Gu Chengyin felt he needed a little time to digest this sentence.

Not to understand the literal meaning—the literal meaning was overly simple—but to digest the weight this sentence represented behind it.

So, in his inspection team, there was not only Chen Busha, the strongest in the Foundation Establishment realm.

But also sitting here was the strongest in the Golden Core realm?

Wasn't this lineup a bit too extravagant?

If his memory served him right, Lin Qingyan was at the early stage of the Golden Core realm!

An early-stage Golden Core cultivator dared to claim to be invincible among Golden Cores?

This could no longer be described as confidence.

She was either a madwoman, or she truly had the foundation to support this arrogance.

Just how strong was Aunt?

Gu Chengyin tried to search his memory for evidence of Lin Qingyan's combat performance.

Scenes began to flash back.

The first one to jump out was the golden electric shock in the Meditation Tower that paralyzed his entire body.

At that time, he only felt shocked and slightly annoyed, but thinking back now, the speed, control, and suppressive force contained in that electric shock... it was terrifying to think about carefully.

But other than that, the subsequent scenes began to turn strange.

It was the reliance and infatuation when her eyes rippled with light, the corners of her eyes reddened, and she softly called him master.

It was the warmth and faint cold fragrance emitting from her body when she actively approached and sought closeness.

It was the kiss she actively planted while secretly hiding behind the folding screen...

These scenes were vivid and charming, carrying temperature, carrying touch, carrying the throbbing of an accelerated heartbeat.

No matter how he looked at it, it had nothing to do with the domineering image of the strongest Golden Core realm cultivator.

She looked more like an infatuated woman unable to extricate herself.

Gu Chengyin's eyebrows furrowed.

It wasn't that he suspected Lin Qingyan of lying, but the contrast between these two images was too great, so great that his cognition was somewhat fractured.

It was like someone telling you that the gentle, smiling good wife and loving mother beside you was actually the number one assassin in the martial world who struck terror into everyone's hearts.

Perhaps Gu Chengyin's silent reminiscing lasted a bit too long, or perhaps the complex expression on his face leaked something.

Lin Qingyan's eyebrows twitched infinitesimally.

She sensed that Gu Chengyin was currently flipping through some strange scenes in his mind.

Not about strength, but those overstepping, intimate fragments that shouldn't be recalled at this moment.

This caused a faint blush to quietly spread across Lin Qingyan's jade-like earlobes.

The blush was very light, like the color of the outermost petals of early spring peach blossoms, exceptionally obvious against her fair skin.

It started from her earlobes, slowly spreading upward, sweeping past the curve of her auricle, and finally stopping at the tips of her ears, making them look almost transparent.

Seeing that Gu Chengyin made no attempt to restrain himself, but instead grew lost in his memories—his gaze drifting and his lips curving into an unconscious smile, revealing a subtle expression caught somewhere between deep thought and utter infatuation—a fleeting trace of embarrassed annoyance flashed through Lin Qingyan's cold, clear eyes.

However, she did not use words to stop him.

Instead, she raised her right hand and extended her index finger.

There was no warning of her gathering power, nor any sign of violent fluctuations in her spiritual energy.

Even her expression remained unchanged, maintaining a calm demeanor that still bore the traces of a lingering blush.

The very next instant.

Crackle!

A golden arc of lightning, as thin as a strand of hair, burst forth from Lin Qingyan's fingertip without the slightest warning.

It tore through the air, shooting straight toward Gu Chengyin.