Chapter 359: Reunion on Canglan Island

Chapter 359: Reunion on Canglan Island

The flying boat shot forward like a bolt of light, and as Xu Yan turned back, he smiled and said, "We have company, someone we know."

After all these years, Bai Yun Kong, the dean of the Dahuang Martial Arts Academy, hadn't shown much improvement in strength. His martial arts training, however, had changed; it was neither the Inner Domain martial arts nor the pure Dahuang martial arts.

He was attempting to break free from the constraints of the Inner Domain and surpass the Lesser Celestial Being realm.

Of course, if he did break through, he still wouldn't be considered a Lesser Celestial Being. A more fitting term for his achievement would be a pseudo-divine state.

The flying boat began to slow down.

As they drew closer to the radiant light, Bai Yun Kong realized that this was a vessel unlike any he had ever seen before. It was majestic and awe-inspiring.

Nothing like this could exist in the Inner Domain!

"Could it be from the Spirit Realm?"

Bai Yun Kong's heart sank. If the gate to the Spirit Realm had opened, news of it would have reached them by now.

However, there was no such news.

Even if something had happened to the Tianbao Pavilion and they were unable to send a message, their scouts would have relayed the information immediately.

The boat ahead slowed down, clearly having noticed their presence.

At this moment, Bai Yun Kong's heart was filled with trepidation and hesitation.

"Dean Bai, it's been a long time. It seems your courage has diminished."

A familiar voice echoed.

Bai Yun Kong was taken aback as he recognized the figure standing on the deck of the approaching boat.

Xu Yan!

"Xu Yan?!"

Bai Yun Kong was overjoyed and hurried towards the boat.

"You're back?"

Xu Yan replied with a smile, "Just came to visit!"

As he boarded the boat, Bai Yun Kong spotted Li Xuan and quickly greeted him respectfully.

Li Xuan nodded in acknowledgment.

Then, to his surprise, he saw several familiar faces—Meng Chong, Su Lingxiu, Du Yu Ying, Yun Miaomiao, and even Xie Lingfeng from Jianzun Cliff.

Bai Yun Kong's eyes quickly scanned the people on the boat, recognizing both old friends and strangers.

One person who caught his attention was the stunningly beautiful woman attending to the elder. She seemed otherworldly and not quite human.

Looking down at the boat beneath his feet, he was astonished.

"What is this? Is this something from the Spirit Realm?"

"This is a flying boat, refined by my junior martial brother. There's nothing like this in the Spirit Realm," Xu Yan explained with a smile.

"Your junior martial brother?" Bai Yun Kong instinctively looked at Meng Chong.

"It's definitely not me," Meng Chong rolled his eyes. "Master took on a junior martial brother in the Spirit Realm, but he's not here."

"I see!" Bai Yun Kong marveled at the prowess of these experts. Even in the Spirit Realm, they were still unparalleled masters.

The Spirit Realm didn't possess such flying boats, so it was clear that this vessel was crafted using techniques passed down by a senior master.

When old friends reunite, it's only natural to catch up and reminisce.

Bai Yun Kong recounted the changes that had taken place in Dahuang over the years. Dahuang was now divided into thirty-six counties, each with a grand county seat. Under the county seats were ten prefecture cities, and under the prefecture cities were numerous towns and counties.

Dahuang had unified, established order, and was continuously refining its laws. Martial arts were also evolving, and all new practitioners were now cultivating Dahuang martial arts.

As Bai Yun Kong explained these changes, Xu Yan and the others couldn't help but marvel at how much had transformed in just over a decade.

It hadn't all been peaceful during these years. There had been occasional unrest, mostly instigated by die-hard adherents of the Inner Domain martial arts and those with nefarious intentions.

However, these disturbances were quickly suppressed, as ninety-nine percent of the strongest Inner Domain experts had pledged their allegiance to Dahuang, leaving the dissenters powerless to create any significant waves.

Xu Yan also saw some hidden concerns. After all, there were numerous Inner Domain practitioners, and if they lost all hope of cultivating Dahuang martial arts, their future prospects would be blocked, leading to discontent and potential trouble.

This was especially true for the top Inner Domain experts. The Spirit Realm filled them with despair, and they refused to be treated like pigs and dogs. The Dahuang martial arts offered them hope, so they supported it.

But if they couldn't break through and their lifespan began to wane, they might start plotting and causing all sorts of problems.

However, with Xu Yan's return, these issues would become non-problems.

With Xu Yan's profound understanding of martial arts, he could guide these individuals and show them a path forward, even if it wasn't the orthodox Dahuang martial arts. As long as they could continue to improve, that would be enough.

How far they could go would depend on their talent and aptitude.

If their aptitude was lacking, then that was their own fault.

To address these potential threats, strength was key. That's why, during this trip back, Xu Yan would guide his father and the others to improve their strength so that they could suppress any unrest in Dahuang.

He didn't need to worry about cultivating loyal subordinates or nurturing proud talents; his grandfather and father understood these matters better than he did.

After Bai Yun Kong finished explaining the situation in Dahuang, he asked curiously, "Xu Yan, what level have you reached now?"

Xu Yan smiled and replied, "I can suppress anyone in the Spirit Realm!"

Bai Yun Kong was stunned and then sighed in admiration. As expected of Xu Yan, even in the Spirit Realm, he had dominated and conquered all!

As expected of a direct disciple of a master!

"Dean Bai, I met the old ancestor of your Seven Stars Academy in the Spirit Realm," Xu Yan said with a laugh.

"Oh? How is the old ancestor doing?" Bai Yun Kong asked, not bothering to inquire about the ancestor's strength.

He was surely no match for Xu Yan.

Since Xu Yan claimed to suppress all in the Spirit Realm, the ancestor must be among those who had been subdued.

The only question was whether he had offended Xu Yan and been suppressed as a result.

"He's doing well," Xu Yan sighed. "His pursuit is no longer the academy or the spread of martial arts. Instead, he's searching for his destined partner!"

Wu Tiannan was indeed a blessed man.

He had embarked on the path of martial arts because of a woman, rising to the peak and then falling, only to rise again and stabilize at the Spirit Realm limit. And now, he had received guidance from Xu Yan's master, forging a benevolent connection.

He was truly a man of extraordinary fate.

"I see!" Bai Yun Kong nodded. The old ancestor felt distant and removed, and there wasn't much to reminisce about.

Now, the Seven Stars Academy was a thing of the past, and the Dahuang Martial Arts Academy had taken its place.

He, Bai Yun Kong, was the first dean of this academy!

"Dean Bai, your path in martial arts has been mostly correct, but not entirely so..."

Now that they had met, Xu Yan decided to offer some guidance.

With Xu Yan's guidance, Bai Yun Kong would soon be able to break through to the pseudo-divine state.

Bai Yun Kong was overjoyed and listened intently, not wanting to miss a single word. Xu Yan's guidance was like a beacon, illuminating the path forward for these Inner Domain experts.

As long as there was a path, there was hope!

While Bai Yun Kong could let go of his attachments and wouldn't harbor any ill intentions, the same might not be true for everyone.

Of course, so far, no one had shown any signs of dissent, as they hadn't yet reached the point of despair where they felt their future was completely blocked.

With Xu Yan's guidance, Bai Yun Kong had a moment of enlightenment.

So that was it!

By not cultivating the Inner Domain martial arts or the pure Dahuang martial arts, he could still break through and continue to improve his strength and realm.

The path forward was now clear!

...

On Canglan Island, peace reigned as usual, undisturbed and undisturbed.

Xu Junhe was diligently cultivating, striving to break through to the Divine Will realm as soon as possible, while Xu's mother was in the Spirit Fruit Forest, pondering over formation techniques as she often did.

Suddenly!

A stream of light descended upon the island.

Xu Junhe's figure flashed, and he appeared in the sky above Canglan Island, only to be stunned by the sight that greeted him.

"Father! Mother!"

Xu Yan's silhouette appeared, and Xu Junhe's joy knew no bounds.

The flying boat landed on an open space on Canglan Island, shrinking as it descended.

"Yan'er!"

Xu's mother, overcome with emotion, grasped her son's hand, examining him from head to toe to ensure he was unharmed before finally heaving a sigh of relief.

"Greetings, Senior!"

After his initial excitement, Xu Junhe respectfully bowed to Li Xuan.

"Hmm."

Li Xuan nodded in acknowledgment.

As they disembarked from the flying boat, Canglan Island remained unchanged, the Spirit Fruit Forest even more lush than before. Li Xuan glanced at the formation diagram that Xu's mother had been working on, a hint of surprise flashing across his face.

He never expected that Xu Yan's mother would also possess some talent in formations.

Reunions were always a time for celebration, and so Canglan Island buzzed with joyous activity as a grand feast was prepared, featuring delicacies made from spirit fruits and spirit materials.

However, for those who had been in the Spirit Realm and were accustomed to consuming even more exquisite spirit objects, the spirit food of Canglan Island held little attraction.

But the gathering was more about the happiness of being together than the food itself.

"Red Cat!"

Xu's mother lovingly rubbed the fat cat's head and scooped him up into her arms.

"Oh, Red Cat, you've gained quite a bit of weight!"

She couldn't contain her delight and pulled out pills to feed him.

Red Cat, accustomed to high-grade pills, found these lower-quality ones less to his taste, but since they were offered by Xu's mother, he obediently swallowed them.

Yue'er watched this scene with a peculiar expression. The mighty king of the Spirit Realm's demon race, an incredibly powerful demon monarch, was now acting like a well-behaved fat cat! Xu Yan's mother wasn't particularly strong, and with Red Cat's strength, she probably wouldn't be able to hold him, which meant he must have restrained his power to allow her to do so.

This didn't surprise Li Xuan. Xu's mother had always doted on Red Cat, even more so than Su Lingxiu. During their time on Canglan Island, over eighty percent of the pills Red Cat received were from her.

She had also taught him how to read, and their bond was a strong one.

At that moment, Red Cat was contemplating an important decision. When he established the demon race, he seemed to have forgotten about Xu's mother.

"It's decided. She's my honored demon mother. Anyone who dares to be disrespectful will be punished!"

Red Cat made up his mind.

Xu Yan's mother was the honored mother of the demon race. If the demon race were in danger, it would be unreasonable to expect Xu Yan not to intervene, wouldn't it?

"Meow!"

Red Cat crouched in front of Xu's mother, pulling out one spirit fruit after another. These were all offerings he had received from the demon race of Tianling State in the Spirit Realm.

"These spirit fruits!"

Xu's mother immediately recognized their superior quality; they were far beyond anything found in the Inner Domain.

"Red Cat knows how to be filial now!"

She was overjoyed.

For Xu Yan, as long as his mother was happy, nothing else mattered.

He was very pleased with Red Cat's behavior and felt that his mother's doting on the cat had been well worth it.

On Canglan Island, the atmosphere was warm and cheerful. Xu Yan and the others shared their experiences and stories from the Spirit Realm.

Du Yu Ying and Yun Miaomiao were especially attentive to Xu's mother, trying to win her favor.

Yue'er shuffled over to join them.

Time flew by, and it had already been half a month since their return to Canglan Island. Guo Rongshan and Kou Ruozhi, along with the others, had also arrived, and they gathered together to plan the future direction of the Inner Domain.

The spirit objects and pills they had brought back from the Spirit Realm were distributed, and formations were set up on Canglan Island.

Several formation plates were given to Guo Rongshan, who was taught how to lay out the formations to protect important locations.

With the formation plates in hand, setting up the formations was a simple task, and he quickly mastered the skill.

To prevent theft and the potential for the formations to be used against them, these plates were imbued with recognition capabilities. Once they acknowledged a master, they couldn't be stolen or manipulated by others.

The formation plates crafted by Fang Hao specifically for their return to the Inner Domain also came in handy.

In the Spirit Fruit Forest, Li Xuan took the time to instruct Xu's mother on formation techniques. To everyone's surprise, after a brief lesson, she managed to grasp the fundamentals and could now set up the most basic formations.

Since she had learned how to lay formations, the necessary treasures to empower them wouldn't be difficult to refine. It would just require more time and materials for practice.

Of course, Xu's mother had only mastered the most basic formations, but that was more than sufficient for her to utilize in the Inner Domain.

Li Xuan gave her a small manual on formations, allowing her to study and improve at her own pace.

The spiritual energy on Canglan Island became denser due to the formations that had been laid, attracting and gathering spiritual energy to the island.

Li Xuan further altered the very essence of Canglan Island, transforming it into a spiritual treasure land. From that moment on, Canglan Island truly became the martial arts holy land of the Inner Domain.

Xu Yan began instructing his parents on their cultivation, but his mother soon lost focus and eventually said, "Yan'er, just teach these things to your father. He can explain them to me later."

With that, she went off to find Red Cat.

Xu Yan could only smile at his mother's nature, letting her do as she pleased.

He turned his attention to guiding Xu Junhe through the intricacies of the Godly Will, Godly Form, and Breaking Void realms, imparting the martial arts techniques of those realms.

The Godly Form and Breaking Void realms merely required memorization of the techniques, which was beyond Xu Junhe's current capabilities. Even rote memorization would be challenging.

It took a significant amount of time for him to commit the techniques to memory.

Xu Yan focused on explaining the Godly Yuan and Godly Insight realms, and his father was able to thoroughly comprehend and remember the martial arts of these realms.

After the explanations, Xu Junhe began his breakthrough to the Godly Will realm.

With the assistance of higher-grade pills, breaking through to the Godly Insight realm was only a matter of time. As for higher martial arts realms, they were not something to be concerned with in the immediate future.

Xu Yan's thoughts were straightforward. Once his own strength increased, he would guide his parents' cultivation further or provide them with higher-grade treasures to continue their breakthroughs.

The next day, Xu Junhe broke through to the Godly Will realm, standing at the pinnacle of the Inner Domain.

Guo Rongshan was also on the verge of breaking through to the Insightful Mystery realm.

Having started his martial arts journey at an older age and with the responsibilities of governing the Inner Domain, his cultivation had inevitably lagged.

Kou Ruozhi, as the leader of the Evergreen Pavilion in the Inner Domain, was naturally guided by Su Lingxiu, along with the other disciples of the Evergreen Pavilion. Under her tutelage, they honed their pill refining techniques to produce more pills.

Meng Chong, with his free time, also instructed others in martial arts.

With Xu Yan's return, the core members of the Canglan Island faction in the Inner Domain would see a significant boost in their strength.

Xu Yan began making arrangements for various matters, ensuring that the Inner Domain would remain stable even in his absence and that Canglan Island would be a bastion of safety, capable of suppressing any potential unrest.

He personally visited the Inner Domain Martial Arts Academy and instructed the elite disciples that Xu Junhe and the others had cultivated over the years, bestowing upon them pills and spiritual artifacts.

He also met with the Pavilion Master of Tianbao Pavilion and other powerful experts, guiding each of them on their cultivation paths and pointing them toward future progress.

These experts were thrilled and understood Xu Yan's intentions and warning. They naturally fell in line, continuing to hold their prestigious positions in the Inner Domain and enjoying the respect that came with it.

As for the Spirit Realm, they had given up on it entirely. Why would they want to be treated like pigs and dogs? Xu Yan's success there was due to his exceptional talent, something they couldn't replicate.

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end