"I see..." Chen Xuan chuckled, "You overthought it. To me, whether the Immortal Alliance exists or not is just fleeting. Your decision isn’t wrong; after all, you merely have to take responsibility for your own choices."

"You don’t blame us?"

"Since it’s not a mistake, why should there be blame?" he countered.

The two couldn’t help but beam with joy, "Thank you, Immortal Master Lord!"

"I told you, the Immortal Master would certainly understand us," Ji Lian jabbed her brother with her elbow, muttering quietly.

"But wasn’t it you who said not to speculate on the thoughts of immortals?" Ji Yun replied helplessly.

So the reason they hadn’t summoned the Ability Store all this time was that they were worried he’d hold them accountable? Chen Xuan found it amusing. If it weren’t for Liu Shuyue wanting to learn more about the spiritual energy device, perhaps the next time he connected to this world would be hundreds of years later.

"Actually, the success of our plan owes some credit to the Immortal Master," Ji Lian playfully winked at Chen Xuan.

"Why say so?"

Ji Yun explained, "Chang’an City couldn’t be preserved, which was a significant blow to the Immortal Alliance. However, establishing a stronghold on the Western Continent and distributing demon fiend resources allowed the Immortal Alliance to maintain real power. If the teleportation array had been operational constantly, their authority would have grown daily."

"But you disappeared." Ji Lian chimed in with a smile, "Though you said you would activate the grand array periodically, years went by without a word. The Immortal Alliance approached us several times, seeking your whereabouts. Without the grand array, their control over cultivators in the Central Plains diminished significantly, giving the Lotus Cloud Sect the opportunity to rise."

Recalling this accelerated passage of time, he should have been trapped in Second New Paris City.

"Perhaps this is karma." Chen Xuan mused, pretending to be profound.

"By the way..." Ji Yun suddenly clapped his hands, "All these years, I’ve painstakingly studied the spells taught by Immortal Master Liu and made some improvements. Could the Immortal Master kindly assess the direction of my enhancements?"

"Oh?"

Since he asked, Chen Xuan couldn’t possibly refuse. He took out a scan gun and pressed the scan button on Ji Yun.

The other’s abilities clearly exceeded five, and after screening several times, aside from the Legendary Ability "Gemini," the highest grade remained those few Lotus Cloud Sect techniques.

For instance, "Celestial Mist Divine Skill" LV8, golden.

—"Permanently evolves the body, taking the first step to ascension. Lifts the limitation on physical longevity; now the Heart Method can prolong life and enhance health."

"Thousand Thoughts Sword: Spellbreaking" LV4, purple.

—"Can be used for chopping vegetables, countering tanks, and breaking spells to penetrate illusions. With this sword, all things can be cleaved."

Even the entry-level Heart Method Purifying Heart Technique underwent changes.

"Purifying Heart True Technique" LV10, blue.

—"Has the effect of regulating the mood and protecting spiritual energy. It is not impossible to use it for prolonging life."

"Did you modify all these?" Chen Xuan couldn’t help being greatly surprised.

He initially thought the so-called improvements were simply upgrades to the original spells by a rank or two, but he hadn’t expected the names to change completely!

From a store standpoint, this should be considered a new ability.

"No wonder you’re the Immortal Master; you can really distinguish it." Ji Yun expressed joy, "It’s not just my achievement; Hua helped me greatly. Anything that pops into my mind, she can perceive, which allows us to probe and correct during cultivation, eventually leading to these outcomes."

The power of cultivation geniuses truly goes beyond mere absorbing spiritual energy...

Chen Xuan couldn’t help but feel a bit envious.

"The improvements are very good...at least they seem more comprehensive than before." he remarked.

"That’s good." With the Immortal Master’s affirmation, the siblings relaxed—unlike Chen Xuan, they couldn’t directly see ability descriptions or grades. Messing up their techniques during cultivation is all too common in the cultivation realm. "We’ve documented the insights and cultivation methods for these improved cultivation techniques in detail. If the Immortal Master and Immortal Master Lord don’t mind, please feel free to refer to them."

This time, Chen Xuan wasn’t reserved and agreed on the spot.

Getting these materials would be of no use to him, but it would be a different story for Liu Shuyue. If she learns it, it’s almost as if he has learned it too.

However, what slightly concerned him was the description of "Celestial Mist Divine Skill."

Lifting the limitation on physical longevity...what does it mean? Was the Celestial Mist Skill purposely designed not to increase longevity?

He remembered Liu Shuyue saying that Qi sensing people generally live long, with no trouble living to seventy or eighty; Lotus Cloud Sect disciples can live to over one hundred and twenty...if there are no accidents.

But such longevity seems unrelated to the Heart Method, it’s simply the direct result of embodying spiritual energy making their bodies tougher.

He always thought that cultivators couldn’t achieve immortality.

But now it seems this viewpoint has considerable problems.

If the Celestial Mist Skill initially could increase lifespan, what would occur? When the next generation of Lotus Cloud Sect disciples emerges, the previous generation would still be alive and well without aging, ability undiminished. Can they calmly transfer roles between these two generations?

Moreover, if one generation of disciples alone can support the kingdom, why should sects send out new batches every century?

Fundamentally, all mysteries still revolve around the Lotus Cloud Sect itself—what kind of relationship does it have with the Six Kingdoms? From the information obtained so far, supporting the kingdom increasingly sounds like an excuse.

And the present Lotus Cloud Sect... is it the same as the one that cultivated Liu Shuyue?

If both exist in the same world, then where are Wanshan Wilderness and Abyss Sea now?

"Immortal Master Lord...is there something strange on my face?"

Perhaps because Chen Xuan had been staring at Ji Yun in a daze, the latter asked curiously.

"No...nothing." He coughed twice, withdrew his gaze, "If the Lotus Cloud Sect grows large in the future, don’t start any ordinary people monitoring plans."

"Uh...what’s that?" They were puzzled.

Chen Xuan also didn’t know how to explain it; revealing too much worried him about causing chain impacts to the future, so he casually replied, "Just remember this phrase." 𝘧𝑟𝑒𝑒𝘸𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝓁.𝘤𝘰𝓂

"Yes, disciple will remember." Ji Yun answered with cupped fists.

Seeing Chen Xuan nod in satisfaction, he continued, "Immortal Master Lord, disciple has another presumptuous request."

"Speak."

"I wish to invite you to witness the prelude to this counterattack battle." Ji Yun spoke earnestly, "Tomorrow the fleet will enter enemy territory. The enemy will surely launch a frenzied counterattack; you don’t need to intervene, just watch from the flagship—I believe the Alliance Army will certainly win!"

Chen Xuan had no reason to reject this invitation.

According to Ji Yun and Ji Lian, the present Four Great Sects can be considered heirs of Heaven and Earth, Only I am Venerable Sect—the siblings passed on Liu Shuyue’s taught theoretical knowledge to Luo Huizhi and others, such as the advantages of natural spiritual energy absorption and demon-slaying cultivation, along with basic heart methods like the Purifying Heart Technique... From a certain perspective, the cultivators during the Immortal Alliance era twenty-five years ago are essentially different from the sect disciples who have risen in the last decade.

If the former was still groping through chaos, the latter is the new generation nurtured under a mature cultivation system.

He was also eager to know what effects this change would bring.

...

The next morning at 9:40, the edge of a grey island emerged on the sea horizon.

A resonant horn sound transmitted from one Wind Ship to another, akin to thunder reverberating through the sky.

Chen Xuan, Liu Shuyue, and Lin Qing boarded the command post of the "Red Feather." As soon as they appeared, they heard rousing cheers. Whether sect cultivators, French soldiers, or the witches of the assembly, they were all waving at the command post and loudly chanting the name of the Immortal Master or Divine Envoy.

"Are these people welcoming us?" Lin Qing said somewhat awkwardly.

"It seems so." Chen Xuan struggled to suppress his laughter; was this the siblings’ secondary purpose in inviting him to stay?

Witnessing the first battle of the counterattack was indeed not a falsehood, but now it seems they hadn’t expressed their true reason fully. In the eyes of all participants, he represented the Immortal Realm or the Lord. Suddenly appearing after years of disappearance and being present on the flagship command post, it could substantially boost everyone’s morale, even if he did nothing.

In a clash where courage determines victory, this undoubtedly adds another ace to the Alliance Army’s success.