The Sovereign's Ascension

Lin Yun looked at Su Ziyao, and Su Ziyao was looking at him as well. The two just simply looked at each other without saying a word. When Tian Xuanzi appeared and the Sword Emperor still hadn’t shown up, Lin Yun’s heart was actually enveloped in fear.

He wasn’t afraid of death as a swordsman, but he was afraid that he would never be able to see Su Ziyao again. The two of them had gone through so much just to be together, and the kiss he gave her back on the Profound Wither Island felt like it was just yesterday.

After coming so far, Lin Yun knew Su Ziyao’s feelings for him, he just wanted to avoid facing it. He didn’t want to lose her, nor did he want to see Su Ziyao feeling sad because of his death. He couldn’t think how great of a price Su Ziyao had to pay just to stay in the Fleeting Cloud Sword Sect for so long.

A long time later, a smile rose on Lin Yun’s lips as he stepped forth and hugged Su Ziyao. This stunned her before she hooked her arms around Lin Yun’s neck and smiled, “You’re getting bolder and bolder now.”

Her body was a little cold, but Lin Yun could feel at ease with her in his embrace. As long as she was in his embrace, he could forget all the troubles in the world. Even the tremendous pressure he felt earlier from death had disappeared; perhaps this was love.

“That’s because you’re too beautiful,” smiled Lin Yun.

“Stop being cheeky!” Su Ziyao rebuked. She had never been so close to someone before, and Lin Yun was still being so cheeky after taking advantage of her.

“Then let me be cheeky for a little longer.” Lin Yun suddenly let go of Su Ziyao. Before Su Ziyao could respond, they kissed once more.

Su Ziyao tried to struggle, but she opened her eyes and looked at Lin Yun’s eyes at such a close range; they had never been so close.

Suddenly, Lin Yun let go of Su Ziyao upon feeling the pain on his lips. When they split, only then did Lin Yun realize that there was a tear on his lips.

“You’re not allowed to do that again,” said Su Ziyao softly. But when she saw Lin Yun in pain, her heart became soft, and she continued, “There are too many people around.”

“I don’t mind,” smiled Lin Yun.

“I don’t mind either, and I like how you’re treating me,” smiled Su Ziyao after a brief stun. When she spoke, she grabbed Lin Yun’s hand and placed it against her chest before saying with a serious expression, “You hear that?”

Lin Yun sensed Su Ziyao’s heartbeat and felt her love for him. At the same time, he could also feel that she was in a wisp of pain. After all, those who cultivate the Empress Heart Sutra can’t afford to fall in love, or they will suffer a setback from the cultivation manual. The deeper they fell, the more pain they would be in. It looked like the rumor was true.

“So I don’t mind,” said Su Ziyao. She didn’t mind what others thought of her and didn’t mind the pain she was in. There were two meanings behind her words.

“But I mind.” Right then, Feng Jue, recovering from his injuries with a saint elixir, said in a jealous tone.

“Hmph, they’re a perfect couple. So an old geezer like you has no right to care about that,” snorted Lil’ Purple as she rolled her eyes at Feng Jue.

When Feng Jue heard that, he nearly threw out a mouthful of blood because Lil’ Purple had targeted him when they were fleeing from Zhuge Qingyun. He was just muttering a little upon seeing Su Ziyao and Lin Yun, but she had to ridicule him again. If it weren’t for Lin Yun, he would’ve taught her a lesson a long time ago.

When his gaze fell onto the saint elixirs in Lil’ Purple’s hands, he said, “You talk a lot for a lass. Why do you need so many saint elixirs at such a young age? G-G-Give me some!”

His face had turned red when he said that because he could also feel it was shameless to ask for that. But his tone was suddenly filled with confidence at the thought that the saint elixirs belonged to his junior brother.

“Hmph, why does this empress have to give you what is mine? Lil’ Red, let’s go. This old geezer is shameless.” Lil’ Purple cautiously glared at Feng Jue before she called Lil’ Red, and they disappeared.

“That lass is fast…” Feng Jue had pity on his face because he couldn’t get a few more saint elixirs. But he soon felt that something wasn’t right and discovered several pairs of gazes directed at him. Ye Ziling, Luo Shuyi, Jiang Lichen, and the rest who followed Su Ziyao over were all looking at him weirdly, instantly making Feng Jue feel awkward.

“Senior Brother, must you go as low as bullying a kid?” Lin Yun asked.

Feng Jue inwardly wailed when he heard that because he was the one being bullied by her instead. But he knew that he couldn’t correct himself no matter how he explained and coughed, “I’ll go into seclusion first to recover from my injuries. I’ll talk to you at a later date.”

Without any hesitation, Feng Jue fled and didn’t even dare to stay for another second.

Looking at Feng Jue fleeing, Lin Yun had no idea what to say about his senior brother. When he turned around, he came to where Luo Shuyi was and said, “Lady Luo, I’ve just received exact news that Brother Tang Jing is still alive. But you might not be able to see him for now. He should have his opportunity.”

Luo Shuyi’s eyes lit up when she heard that, and she finally felt relieved. A brief moment later, Luo Shuyi smiled bitterly, “He will probably come and look for me when he’s recovered. But… I have no idea how to face him now.”

Lin Yun smiled because what she said was true. After all, feelings between men and women were never one-sided.

“No matter what, I’m grateful,” said Luo Shuyi.

“You don’t have to thank me. We didn’t know each other in the past, but we’re friends now. So you don’t have to be so courteous. Moreover, if it wasn’t for you, I wouldn’t have been able to reach the mountain's summit,” replied Lin Yun. At that time, he was still at the Quasi-Elysium Core Realm and didn’t have much confidence in defeating Qin Cang. So Luo Shuyi was a great help at the crucial moment.

“Alright then. The Sword Sect is the strongest sect of swordsmen in the Ancient Barren Domain, with a huge reputation even in the entire Eastern Desolation. The test for the Sword Sect that opens once every four years is just two months away. It will be a grand event at that time, and I believe that you will also be there?” Luo Shuyi winked.

“Test?” Lin Yun rubbed his chin and said, “Don’t tell me there’s another way of joining the Sword Sect if I don’t go?”

“There is.” Luo Shuyi explained, “There are two methods for when powerful sects recruit new disciples. One is through an internal selection, where they will pick those with good potential. Most of them are recruited into the sect at a young age, such as Qin Cang, Sikong Zhou, Nangong Ze, and the rest. They joined their respective sects at a young age. The majority of the quota for internal selections are in the hands of deacons and elders of the sect meant for their descendants.”

This was Lin Yun's first time hearing about this, but he soon figured out why. There was a threshold for internal selections; you either need to display a strong talent at a young age or you have an elder of the family in the Sword Sect.

But no matter how someone looked for geniuses, they couldn't find every genius in the world. Some also didn’t show any talent when they were young and only started showing their talent when they grew up. For those geniuses, the Sword Sect would definitely not reject them; thus, the once in every four years test was meant for those geniuses.

Compared to those who were internally selected, the open test had a wider scope, and this meant that the threshold would also be higher. So one could expect the competition to be intense. After all, it wasn’t easy to join the Sword Sect, which was ranked first in the Ancient Barren Domain, and the sect to which the Radiant Sword Saint belongs to.

When Lin Yun turned around, he discovered that Feng Jue had already left. So he could only ask about it again in the future to see if he had to attend the test or if he was already internally selected by the Sword Sect.

“Young Master Lin, the Great Saint Origin is a huge opportunity for you, but it’s also huge trouble at the same time. So you have to cultivate quickly and join the Sword Sect. After all, you’ll be safer when you’re stronger. Only then, can you grasp a hold of your life,” said Luo Shuyi with a grave expression. “With your talent and the Sword Sect’s foundation, I can already foresee your rise in the Ancient Barren Domain.”

She was optimistic about Lin Yun. Even if he was young and had only arrived in the Kunlun Realm for a year, she was sure that the name ‘Flower Burial’ would be known by everyone in the world one fine day. Amongst the younger generations in the entire Ancient Barren Domain, Lin Yun was a true fated transcendent.

“I feel that too,” smiled Lin Yun.

“You’re not humble at all,” said Ye Ziling.

“Lady Luo, if you have nothing important, why don’t you stay in the Fleeting Cloud Sword Sect for a few more days?” Lin Yun threw out an invitation.

“It’s time. I have to travel to the Profound Valley and tell Tang Jing’s elders about his situation. If Tang Jing returns, he will also head to the Profound Valley immediately.” Luo Shuyi was a good lady, and she could only feel relieved when she see’s Tang Jing with her own eyes.

“Then, let us send you.” Just like that, the group sent Luo Shuyi down the mountain.

At the same time, four figures stood side-by-side a hundred miles away from the Fleeting Cloud Sword Sect. They were the Emerald Jade Manor’s Ning Feng, Heavenly Blade Pavilion’s Nangong Ze, Thunder Sect’s Zhang Jin, and the Vajra Monastery’s Cang Yun. They had personally witnessed the entire event, and they were still filled with shock.

“I can’t imagine how powerful he will become after he joins the Sword Sect when he can already step on Qin Cang when he’s trapped in a small place like the Fleeting Cloud Sword Sect.” Nangong Ze sighed with a grave expression.

“Looks like it’s time for the Elysium Core Rankings to change.” Ning Feng smiled. Even without Lin Yun, it wouldn’t take them, who were in the top ten on the Empyrean Ranking, long to shine on the Elysium Core Ranking too.

“Baldie, whatever happened to your ancient stone tablet?” Nangong Ze asked, clearly still not letting go of the stone tablet.

Cang Yun smiled and replied, “Well, it doesn’t matter for me to tell you honestly. I gave it to Lin Yun.”

His words made Ning Feng, Zhang Jin, and Nangong Ze surprised. But they soon understood how Lin Yun reached the Elysium Core Realm when he reappeared.

But Cang Yun didn’t seem too bothered and replied, “That stone tablet did nothing. You guys might think that I suffered a loss, but Lin Yun was the one who suffered a loss. He swapped it with me with a Dragon Clan’s body-refining technique.”

“If I speculated it right, the stone tablet had an origin saint rune, and the stone tablet might’ve been the bone of a Golden Crow. As for the martial technique on the stone tablet, it’s definitely a lot more valuable than your Dragon Clan body-refining technique,” smiled Ning Feng.

“You’re adorably foolish. I don’t even think you can reach Lin Yun’s height with the Dragon Clan’s body-refining technique,” smiled Nangong Ze.

Zhang Jin also had mockery flashing through his pupils as he said, “And you can proudly say that Lin Yun suffered a loss? Yeah, you didn’t make a loss. You practically lost your chance to suppress the first on the Empyrean Ranking!”

Cang Yun was stumped when he heard what they said, with his smile freezing on his face. The more he thought about it, the more it didn’t seem right. As he began to doubt, his face also became uglier, and he asked, “Are you guys serious about that?”

“Figure it out yourself.” The three fated transcendence no longer bothered about Cang Yun while they inwardly laughed.