Chapter 96
The Baek Yeon-Ju slowly lowered its altitude.
As they drew closer, Cloud Mountain seemed less like a mountain and more like an entire world.
The pavilions lined up along the foot of the mountain gradually revealed their outlines, and even the size of a single roof tile was incomparable to what she had seen at the Main Family.
Clouds rising from various parts of the mountainside obscured and revealed the pavilions, forming a picture-perfect scene.
The Baek Yeon-Ju was heading toward the Flying Immortal Platform at the edge of the mountain’s foot.
The Formation Glyphs carved at the edge of the Courtyard slowly rotated, drawing a shape that embraced the entire flatland.
The hull touched down lightly without a single tremor.
As the Law Enforcer withdrew his Hand Seal, the Barrier gently dissolved on the deck.
The air blowing in from outside was mixed with a refreshing energy she had never smelled in the Clan’s Territory.
At one end of the Flying Immortal Platform, Baek Gyu and Inner Sect Elder Pung Jin-Hae had come out to greet them.
Baek Gyu’s energy had become even deeper than before.
Pung Jin-Hae stood with an appearance even more like an Immortal than during the Golden Core Banquet.
Baek Mu-Yeong stepped down from the deck and politely brought his hands together.
“For you to come out and greet us in person like this, the goodwill the Yeonha Baek Clan has received is not small.”
Pung Jin-Hae shook his head as if it were nothing and brought his hands together in return.
“A Clan that has decided to continue a ten-thousand-year bond has visited our Main Sect. It is a matter the Sect Master personally instructed, so it would not have been proper for anyone other than This Old Man to step forward.”
This time, Baek Gyu took a step forward and lightly bowed his head.
“Uncle, have you been well?”
“Yes, have you been well?”
Baek-Cheong also straightened her clothes and paid her respects to the Inner Sect Elder.
“I respectfully offer my greetings.”
Pung Jin-Hae gave a light nod.
“Our Baek Clan has brought no small amount of sincerity. Where would you like us to move it?”
Baek Mu-Yeong’s words followed naturally.
His tone was gentle, but it was accompanied by a glance toward the deck.
It meant, “Please take a good look at what is inside.”
The Storage Platform was likely filled to the brim with spiritual medicines and pills, and Inscribed Spirit Gathering Pills would be filling several jade bottles.
As this was the first greeting right after proclaiming the Millennial Plan, included was a hefty amount of sincerity befitting the Clan’s status.
Pung Jin-Hae nodded lightly.
“Since it is a sincere offering meant to go up to the Sect Master, it would be proper for This Old Man to personally inspect and collect it.”
“It would be our greatest honor if you did so.”
Pung Jin-Hae slowly turned his body.
“Guild Master, please follow me this way.”
“Yes.”
Baek Mu-Yeong cast a brief glance at Baek-Cheong.
“Take a look around the Biun Sect with your Older Brother for a while.”
“Yes, uncle.”
As the backs of the two men grew distant, the Flying Immortal Platform became quiet for a moment.
“Cheong-A.”
A soft voice fell from above her head.
Looking up, she saw her Eldest Brother slightly bending one knee to match her eye level.
“Have you been well all this time?”
“Yes, Orabeoni.”
Baek-Cheong gladly exchanged greetings with her Eldest Brother, whom she was facing after a long time.
Her Eldest Brother was asking once more about things he likely already knew through letters, such as their mother’s well-being, their father’s Golden Core Breakthrough, and their grandfather’s entry into the Late Golden Core Stage.
While she provided answers one by one, Baek Gyu subtly pointed toward the foot of the mountain.
“There are quite a few places I want to show you. Would you like to look around the Biun Sect for a while?”
“Yes, please show me around!”
Baek Gyu lightly raised his hand.
Spiritual energy wrapped around his fingertips, and the air beneath his feet slowly grew heavy.
Clouds gathered, one wisp at a time.
The motion of calling the surrounding clouds with a single hand gesture flowed naturally.
Soon, a neat mass of white cloud slowly settled in front of their feet.
It was large enough for a couple of adults to stand on together, and its outline remained intact, faintly puffed up.
“Climb onto this.”
“Ride on a cloud?”
It was her first time seeing a sight like this, as she was being told to step onto a cloud laid out beneath her feet.
On the outside, anyone could see it was just a mass of cloud.
Her toes hesitated for a moment at the sight, making her feel as though her foot would sink right through.
“…I won’t fall through, right?”
“Haha, don’t worry and come on.”
Figuring she had nothing to lose, she carefully took a step with one foot.
The sensation on the sole of her foot was completely different from what she expected.
A fluffy sensation supported her sole.
As she stepped with her other foot, the cloud gently embraced the tops of her feet.
“I can actually ride it.”
The texture of a cloud she had only ever imagined was actually touching her feet.
It was fluffy yet firm, like a cotton blanket but without sinking in - that kind of feeling.
Moreover, it was even balancing itself on its own.
Even if she leaned her body slightly, the surface of the cloud naturally tilted along with her, supporting the area beneath her feet.
“Wow…!”
A small exclamation slipped out before she knew it.
It was a different kind of marvel from when she had seen Cloud Mountain.
“Orabeoni, this is really fluffy.”
She let out the same exclamation one after another without hesitation.
Wearing a pleased smile, Baek Gyu also stepped lightly onto one edge of the cloud.
Even so, the cloud bore the weight of both people at once without losing its shape.
“If I just learn this well, I could float around anywhere.”
The image of riding on a palm-sized wisp of cloud and floating gently above people’s heads briefly flashed through her mind.
It was a picture that perfectly suited her tastes.
As she pushed her imagination to the limit, she naturally opened her mouth.
“Then Orabeoni, can the cultivators of the Biun Sect ride any cloud?”
Baek Gyu paused for a moment before letting out a small laugh.
“Haha, Cheong-A. It’s not like that.”
“It’s different?”
“This is a type of Escape Technique that gathers clouds to prepare a place beneath your feet. It is commonly called the Biun Sect’s Cloud Evasion Art. Therefore, it is distinct from other clouds.”
“Aha.”
Outwardly, she gave a brief nod.
In her mind, another thought was stealthily rising.
“It would be nice if I could also ride the rain clouds summoned by the Spirit Rain Art.”
Suddenly, a picture was drawn in her mind.
A scene of floating around with a cloud lying beneath her feet and scattering a drizzling rain over people’s heads.
The faces of people looking dumbfounded after suddenly being hit by rain naturally came to mind.
“Ah, this is true art.”
Baek-Cheong let out a short sigh without realizing it.
Immediately after, her Eldest Brother’s gaze landed straight on her.
“Cheong-A.”
“Yes?”
“Do you want to try learning the Cloud Evasion Art?”
Baek Gyu asked affectionately, as if he had pinpointed his younger sister’s feelings.
“If you enter the Biun Sect, you can learn the Cloud Evasion Art as much as you want, but since you have already entered the Heavenly Sword Sect, it is truly a shame. However, even if you are not a Disciple of the Biun Sect, something on the level of the Cloud Evasion Art can be learned by contributing to the Biun Sect…”
“Wait a minute.”
For Baek-Cheong, there was no bolt from the blue quite like this one.
Contributing to the Biun Sect meant she had to work.
“Absolutely not.”
Baek-Cheong inwardly shook her head at the situation that was terrible just to imagine.
Meanwhile, her Eldest Brother’s affectionate gaze deepened even further.
“This Orabeoni could try speaking to the Sect Master once…”
“Orabeoni!”
She urgently changed the subject before his words could drag on any longer.
“More importantly, hurry up and show me around the Biun Sect. It’s my first time seeing Cloud Mountain and my first time coming to the Biun Sect, so everything is amazing. It’s such a waste to just stay still in one place like this.”
Pretending to be extremely excited, she subtly shifted the topic.
Baek Gyu closed his mouth for a moment before smiling gently.
“Right, I forgot. There are many places to show you.”
“Phew.”
She let out an inward sigh and briefly swept a hand over her small chest.
As her Eldest Brother moved his hand lightly, the cloud gently rose.
The cloud, leaving as if circling above the Flying Immortal Platform, flowed into the procession of pavilions at the foot of the mountain.
Seen up close, the pavilions of the Biun Sect had a different atmosphere from the pavilions of the Main Family.
Every Pavilion had cloud-related formations carved into it, and the sight of clouds slipping out one wisp at a time along the bells at the ends of the eaves was strangely neat and refined.
Traces of bluish spirit veins shone faintly from various places along the mountainside.
“The concentration of spiritual energy must be several times that of the Main Family.”
There was certainly a whole lot to see.
However, there was one awkward point.
“I can hardly see any people.”
If it were the Main Sect of a Great Sect, the sight of disciples coming and going would be natural, but the paths between the pavilions were quiet, and the shadows in the inner courtyards were sparse.
Even the few disciples passing by seemed to have hurried steps.
“Orabeoni, are there not many people usually seen in the Biun Sect?”
“Hmm?”
Baek Gyu looked down with a puzzled expression before soon smiling faintly.
“Ah, it must have looked that way.”
“Yes, since it’s the Main Sect, I thought it would be full of people.”
“It’s because of the timing. The New Spring Exchange Gathering is opening soon.”
“The New Spring Exchange Gathering?”
Baek-Cheong asked back about the words that stimulated her curiosity.
Baek Gyu slightly slowed the cloud’s speed and explained slowly.
“Yes, it’s an event the Sect holds in time for the new year. It’s a place where people of the Sect and external guests step in to open up exchanges.”
“Are many people coming?”
“Several exchange gatherings are held all at once, so if they are disciples of the Biun Sect, they are bound to have their hands tied in one of them. That is why the Main Sect looks so quiet like this.”
“If there are several exchange gatherings…”
“First, there is the art exhibition. It is a place to unleash the skills one possesses in each Art, such as Pill Refining, Talisman Crafting, Formations, and Artifact Forging.”
Baek-Cheong listened attentively to the appetizing story.
“Next is the auction.”
“An auction?”
With her ears perking up slightly more, she waited for his next words.
“Treasures brought from other sects, rare items submitted by nearby rogue cultivators, and goods released from within the Biun Sect all gather in one place. It is different from the auctions held by merchant guilds; there are mostly items strongly imbued with the Sect’s colors, so there is a distinct joy in seeing them.”
“This might be worth checking out.”
If it was an auction with strong Sect colors, there was no telling what kind of fortuitous encounters might be rolling around.
“And finally, there is a separate highlight of the New Spring Exchange Gathering.”
Baek Gyu continued speaking with a quite serious demeanor.
“It is called the Martial Arts Competition.”
Just hearing the name, she could guess what kind of event it was.
“Usually, it is a place where disciples of the same realm pair up and compete with their techniques/spells. Qi Condensation pairs with Qi Condensation, and Foundation Establishment pairs with Foundation Establishment. It is not only held within the Sect, but external guests also frequently join in, so anyone of the same realm and age group can freely show off his or her skills.”
“Are you participating too, Orabeoni?”
“Although I am at Foundation Establishment, because my position is that of a True Disciple, I tend not to participate. Rather than that, it would be good for you to come and watch peers of the same realm competing.”
“Yes, I definitely want to see it!”
Even as she answered her brother brightly, another thought was rolling quickly in one corner of her mind.
If it was the same realm as she, it was merely the Late Qi Condensation Stage.
If it were peers at Qi Condensation gathered at the Biun Sect’s New Spring Exchange Gathering, there was a high possibility that Heavenly Spirit Root Geniuses would be mixed in everywhere.
If peers of the same age sent from other places were added to that, it seemed a picture definitely worth seeing would be drawn.
However, this much was just slightly lacking in weight to be called the highlight.
“But is it an event worth people being so busy over?”
“The rewards are not small.”
“Hm?”
At the single phrase that caught her ear, her gaze was slightly drawn toward Baek Gyu.
“Rewards?”
“Yes. The prizes the Sect puts up for the top award winners of the Martial Arts Competition are not small. Pills, spirit stones, jade slips, and even magical artifacts… The rewards vary by realm, so it is difficult to list them all one by one, but every year, the disciples tend to pour their passion and sincerity into the Martial Arts Competition.”
If it were merely spirit stones or pills, it wouldn’t have been this popular.
If it was a prize put up directly by the Sect, it was worth looking forward to.
‘Isn’t this worth jumping into once?’
On the quietly flowing cloud, Baek-Cheong kept her mouth shut for a moment.
If things went well, it seemed she could see an opportunity to learn the Cloud Evasion Art.
“Orabeoni.”
“Yes.”
“Can you also earn contribution points in the Martial Arts Competition?”
Baek Gyu looked down at his younger sister with puzzled eyes.
On the other hand, Baek-Cheong merely looked up at her Eldest Brother with eyes full of greed - no, ambition.