The Long Journey to Immortality

"Han Lu, that first illusion you gave me..." Chai Tianjiao only said half a sentence before completing the question with her eyes.

Han Lu said, "It's true, this is exactly what happened to me during that period."

"This matter..."

“He didn’t know; only my father knew.”

Chai Tianjiao nodded, then jumped to a very different conclusion, saying, "Then it seems we really are destined to be best friends."

“Yes,” Han Lu agreed, “good friends.”

The conversation between the two was disjointed and left Mo Zhehan and Wu Jiayue, who had not experienced the illusion, completely confused.

However, neither of them asked too many questions, simply assuming it was a secret or tacit understanding between Han Lu and Chai Tianjiao.

The four of them stayed together for another hour before Han Lu and Mo Zhehan finally took their leave.

For the next few days, Han Lu and Xuan Chengzi stayed obediently at Mo Zhehan's residence until they set off on the ninth day, when they reappeared in the Zixiao Sect.

Chapter 924 The Heaven-Covering Venerable

Although the diplomatic visit was scheduled beforehand, due to the secrecy of the matter and the difference in cultivation and status between the two sides, Xuan Chengzi, who had already stepped down as the head of the Zhengyi Sect, decided to set off a day earlier to avoid delaying the important matter or causing any unfavorable changes.

Both he and Han Lu were outsiders. Although they had a map of the Jitian Palace, they were not particularly clear about where the Zhetian Venerable, the master of the Jitian Palace, lived and worked in the central area.

Therefore, we still need to trouble Mo Zhehan to help us by leading the way and acting as our guide.

Mo Zhehan was naturally eager for this job and had great enthusiasm for it.

On this day, in the Extreme Heaven Palace, the three of them, along with Zi'e, set off on their journey aboard the flying magical artifact owned by Mo Zhehan.

Han Lu had met Zhetian Venerable several times during the East-West Tournament, and even had a direct verbal exchange with him during the awards ceremony.

If Han Lu's name is mentioned, the Celestial Venerable will most likely still remember her.

But the two of them didn't really know each other.

Xuan Chengzi is even less capable than Han Lu.

Although he had exchanged letters with the Venerable Zhetian at least ten times through messengers when he was the sect leader, he had never met the Venerable Zhetian even once.

Therefore, while traveling, Han Lu and Xuan Chengzi asked Mo Zhehan a lot about his master, the Palace Master, wanting to learn more about this most powerful figure in the Jitian Palace before meeting him again.

"Master?" Mo Zhehan pondered for a moment before giving a general assessment: "He is a very gentle cultivator who rarely speaks, but whenever he does, his words are always thought-provoking and hit the nail on the head."

It is not proper for a disciple to comment on his master.

Mo Zhehan stopped there, offering more commentary on Zhetian Venerable's performance as Palace Master.

"As the palace master, Master's performance can be described as very good."

"It is worth writing about how it has facilitated friendship between East and West."

"Although there is an element of the times creating heroes, the effort that Master put in cannot be ignored."

"In the past century, at least thirty disciples have advanced to the Golden Core Realm, and as many as three elders have advanced to the Nascent Soul Realm."

"This is also closely related to a series of policies that Master introduced after becoming Palace Master."

……

Many points were somewhat far-fetched, but Mo Zhehan ultimately made a lot of changes.

The gist is that "the situation at the Jitian Palace is excellent, largely due to the wise leadership of the Palace Master, Zhetian Venerable."

Hearing these polite words, Han Lu and Xuan Chengzi were somewhat disappointed.

"But they're quite diligent in their management, so they should take this kind of important matter seriously," Han Lu said to herself, trying to reassure herself.

Xuan Chengzi then transmitted his voice to Han Lu, saying, "Be extra careful when you meet with Zhetian Venerable tomorrow. When discussing the impact of this matter on the world, try to exaggerate the drawbacks as much as possible."

"Apart from that, I will mainly take the lead, and your words will only be supplementary."

"If the Venerable of Covering Heaven doesn't ask you directly, then speak as little as possible."

Xuan Chengzi gave Han Lu a few more pointers to prevent her from becoming stage-frightened or doing anything that would be detrimental to the mission, as Han Lu rarely attends such diplomatic occasions.

It was fortunate that it was Han Lu. If it had been anyone else, Xuan Chengzi would not have said just those three sentences. He might have even given some guidance on etiquette to avoid being impolite in front of Western friends and losing face for the Zhengyi Sect.

Han Lu nodded slightly and replied, "I will follow Elder Xuancheng's arrangements."

If we have to talk about cultivation level, Han Lu has surpassed Xuan Chengzi by a little.

However, she still habitually regarded Xuan Chengzi as the sect leader and listened to his arrangements in this matter, as he was a seasoned veteran skilled in politics.

Han Lu and Xuan Chengzi did not respond, so Mo Zhehan continued to talk about the deeds of the Heavenly Venerable.

Mo Zhehan recounted many stories about the Venerable One of the Heavenly Shroud before he became a palace master or a Nascent Soul cultivator, which gave Han Lu and Xuan Chengzi a better understanding of the Venerable One of the Heavenly Shroud's identity as a cultivator.

The Great Yu Dynasty has a large population and abundant resources, but the per capita amount of cultivation resources is not as high as that of the Central Plains.

In addition, its treacherous cultivation environment means that even in the Jitian Palace, the proportion of low-level cultivators advancing to high-level levels is not as high as that of the Zhengyi Sect in the Central Plains.

In the Zhengyi Sect, under normal circumstances, out of a hundred Qi Refining disciples, an average of thirteen or fourteen will successfully advance to the Foundation Establishment Realm.

In the Celestial Palace, this number hovers around six or seven.

In this way, the number of disciples in the Jitian Palace is reduced layer by layer, so even though the number of disciples in the Jitian Palace is almost fifty times that of the Zhengyi Sect, the number of high-level cultivators is not as exaggerated as that of the Zhengyi Sect.

Han Lu even suspected that the number of Nascent Soul cultivators in the Zhengyi Sect and the Jitian Palace might be almost the same.

This may be why the Jitian Palace, deeply influenced by the violent culture of cultivation, did not use the teleportation portal to travel millions of miles to the Central Plains and attempt to plunder abundant cultivation resources through violent means.

Advancing through the ranks in the Extreme Heaven Palace is considerably more difficult than in the Zhengyi Sect.

This also shows that the Heavenly Venerable, who was able to advance to the mid-Nascent Soul stage and take the position of Palace Master, has outstanding talent.

Born in the Central Plains, he might already be close to the late Nascent Soul stage and is about to make a sprint toward the highest cultivation level in the mortal realm.

When talking about this topic, Mo Zhehan's eyebrows danced with excitement.

This shows that Mo Zhehan has great respect and admiration for his master.

Starting from Zixiao Sect and crossing a small part of Jitian Prefecture, the group arrived at the central area of ​​Jitian Prefecture in just three hours.

Switching to aerial flight, Han Lu took Zi'e's arm and followed the main group to complete the last leg of the journey in a more polite manner.

To ensure the neutrality of the highest decision-making level of the Jitian Palace, cultivators from any sect who become high-ranking members of the Jitian Palace must move out of their original residences and live and work in the palace complex of the same name located in the center of the Jitian Palace.

As the palace master, the Venerable Zhetian's residence and office are located in the very center of the Jitian Palace complex.

A magnificent, golden palace named "Canglan" was the group's final destination.

Having arrived early, the four of them settled into a side hall under the arrangement of the Jitian Palace cultivators who were in charge of the daily affairs of the Canglan Hall.

Because of her special status, Zi'e could only live in the same room as Han Lu, and was symbolically looked after by Han Lu.

Neither of them objected to this arrangement, and Zi'e was even more willing to get closer to Han Lu.

After a night of cultivation, early the next morning, Venerable Zhetian sent messengers to invite Xuanchengzi, Hanlu, and Zi'e to meet him.

We passed through several doors in the magnificent, golden hall, which was in the style of the Great Yu Dynasty.

Finally, in a large room resembling a study, Xuan Chengzi and Han Lu met Zhetian Venerable, the highest leader of the Jitian Palace.

Chapter 925 East-West Cooperation

The Venerable One of Heaven was dressed in silk robes, exuding wealth and looking like a mortal king.

However, the aura of the Nascent Soul Realm emanating from him made it impossible for anyone to mistake him for someone else. They would even feel that his "noble air" was an innate quality rather than something bestowed upon him by external means.

“You must be Fellow Daoist Xuan Chengzi,” Zhetian Venerable put down his pen, stood up, walked across the desk, and approached Xuan Chengzi and Han Lu. “We have been corresponding by letter for decades. Today we are finally able to meet. It is truly better to see them in person than to hear about them.”

Xuan Chengzi returned the greeting without saying much formality, "Palace Master Zhetian, you're too kind. We've been friends for many years, and I've been looking forward to this day for a long time."

"Just now, having stepped down from his position as sect leader, he proactively sought out an official post and came to the Extreme Heaven Palace."

The Venerable Zhetian chuckled and said, "After we finish discussing official business, Fellow Daoist Xuanchengzi, would you like to have a few drinks with me and get to know each other better? Please don't refuse."

"Definitely, definitely," Xuan Chengzi said repeatedly.

Immediately afterwards, the Venerable One of Heaven looked at Han Lu and said, "I was wondering who the True Phoenix Fairy was who had my disciple so infatuated with her. It turns out it was you, Han Lu."

"Speaking of which, the last time we met you were still a Foundation Establishment cultivator. In the blink of an eye, you've already reached the mid-Golden Core stage and condensed at least five Core patterns. That speed... tsk tsk."

The Venerable of Covering the Sky did not hold back his praise, "If I had known, I should have been more forceful with Fellow Daoist Yun Min back then and asked for you. Then, a thousand years later, my Extreme Heaven Palace would surely have had one more Nascent Soul Realm cultivator with True Spirit Bloodline."

Han Lu was slightly surprised, wondering how the Celestial Venerable could see through her approximate cultivation level without using his divine sense.

Han Lu bowed respectfully and said modestly, "Your Highness is too kind."

"I have only cultivated for a hundred years, and I have just been a little lucky."

"I do have the ambition to advance to the Nascent Soul Realm, but a thousand years is quite an exaggeration. I hope that with the Palace Master's auspicious words, I can achieve this goal soon."

Upon hearing this, Venerable Zhetian chuckled twice and sighed, "If my disciples had half the pragmatism and half the talent of Fairy Zhenfeng, then I, as their master, wouldn't have to worry so much."

Hearing this, Han Lu could only smile and dared not say another word.

Finally, the Venerable One of Heaven looked at Zi'e.

"Who is this fellow Daoist? I've never seen him before, so how should I address him?"

The question was cryptic, but given the Nascent Soul stage cultivator status of the Heavenly Venerable, Xuan Chengzi could still discern its profound meaning at such close range.

After Zi'e introduced herself, Xuan Chengzi took the initiative to help Zi'e explain her background.

Upon hearing that Zi'e came from another world called the Eastern Land, the perceptive Venerable Zhetian already had a premonition about the intentions of Xuan Chengzi and Han Lu.

"Sit, sit." He waved his hand, gesturing for the three "diplomatic envoys" to take their seats, and the Heavenly Venerable also returned to his own seat.

The smile on his face faded considerably, clearly indicating that he had entered the state of being the palace master.

"Fellow Daoist Xuanchengzi, could you please specify the exact timeframe?"

Having made preparations in advance, Xuan Chengzi began to get down to business at a leisurely pace.

First, the story recounts the general process by which Zi'e arrived in the Central Plains, then the information obtained from Zi'e, and finally emphasizes the importance of the calamity that will occur a thousand years later.

During this period, Zi'e spoke, describing the approximate strength of the various tribes in the East.

This part is also slightly exaggerated, just to make the Celestial Venerable more attentive to the matter and willing to temporarily give up some immediate benefits to prepare for the long term.

The technique used was quite ordinary, but because the Celestial Venerable was completely unaware of the situation in the Eastern Lands, he could only rely on the two sources of information currently at hand, which made this move quite effective.