Evil Venerable of the Sword Dao
Chapter 266 - 144 Heavenly Mechanism Sect Master

Chapter 266: Chapter 144 Heavenly Mechanism Sect Master

Zhou Yan nodded slightly, his voice indifferent as he said, "This place, for ordinary people, is certain death. Even with my constitution, I nearly lost my hearing. This shows how terrifying the powerhouses that emerge from such an environment must be.

And yet, as the genius among them, Mr. Zhuge Chunqiu, you consistently suppress your own strength and performance. Why is that?"

"Zhou Lingzhe, this, I actually have my own difficulties. But Zhou Lingzhe, you only need to know that I will not harm you. That would suffice."

Zhuge Chunqiu was somewhat embarrassed, but he didn’t deny what Zhou Yan said.

That is to say, he admitted that he indeed had hidden his strength.

"Hmm, it’s also fortunate that you don’t harbor any harmful intentions against me; otherwise, you would truly be dead by now."

Zhou Yan said casually.

Although his words were casual, Zhuge Chunqiu knew that this was no joke, because Zhou Yan never joked.

After looking at the mountains ahead, Zhuge Chunqiu, who had been flying, suddenly stopped and said solemnly, "Zhou Lingzhe, I can only take you this far. Take out the Heavenly Mechanism Order, and you can go up.

Above, other than the past Sect Masters and the dedicated followers, no one else can go there. But you are an exception."

"An exception? It seems that your decision to bring me here was already anticipated by them. Spring and Autumn Spiritualist, your Derivation Skill is not profound enough. What you have derived is merely what they allowed you to derive."

Zhou Yan pondered, patted Zhuge Chunqiu on the shoulder, took out the Heavenly Mechanism Order, and continued flying forward.

Zhuge Chunqiu, however, stood there perplexed as if he had fallen into some confusion.

"Zhou Lingzhe, welcome to Tianji Mountain. The Sect Master has been waiting for you for a long time."

As Zhou Yan ascended the mountain, before he even reached the summit, a woman in a snow-white long dress, moving as if walking on ripples, approached and spoke softly.

Yes, she was speaking.

Her voice was exquisitely beautiful, so flawless that one could not perceive a single imperfection. Her voice also carried a trace of Tao, which suppressed all of the Void’s chaotic energy that made sound transmission impossible.

This was the method of the Void Realm.

This was a beautiful woman from the Void Realm.

This was a physical being, not a Void Body.

Thus, this person was very powerful and terrifying.

But at this moment, her beauty made one forget their fear of her.

Zhou Yan was not inexperienced with beauties, but it was his first time seeing such a uniquely exotic woman.

Because this woman had a pair of pure white, light-screen-like wings with a halo of colors fluttering gently. The beauty of it even surpassed the beauty of her face.

Inside and outside the wings, as bright as triple suns, yet the beauty of these wings did not seem to exist in three dimensions, for from almost any angle one could see the full outline of these wings, without ever seeing the back.

Zhou Yan’s gaze sharpened, he took a deep breath suppressing the mysterious sweet and serene fragrance that entered his body, and spoke, "In that case, I appreciate your effort, Fairy."

Zhou Yan’s words came out.

But he couldn’t hear his own voice, as the words shattered in the atmosphere as soon as they were spoken, unable to exist.

Yet, the winged woman heard them.

Her beautiful phoenix eyes, clear as water, empathetic.

She nodded slightly and said, "Zhou Lingzhe, this way, please."

"Hmm."

Knowing he could not speak due to insufficient strength, Zhou Yan no longer tried to speak. Instead, he quietly acknowledged and followed behind the winged woman.

Yet, the winged woman, as if to show respect, stepped aside to leave a path and did not lead the way from the front but walked beside Zhou Yan, even slightly lagging a bit behind.

This was an ancient rule, a subtle protocol used by subordinates towards their superiors.

In this world, few understood this.

But Zhou Yan did, because his master had reached certain heights, and many great figures had displayed such behavior in the past.

Because he understood, Zhou Yan’s confusion deepened.

But he knew, existence was justified. Just as there were constitutions abandoned by the Heavenly Dao, there were also those favored by it.

The Secret Realm of Tianji Mountain was the latter.

Thus, being favored by the Heavenly Dao, it was natural to possess incredible, mysterious abilities.

Possessing mysterious abilities, knowing some peculiar things was not out of the ordinary at all.

Zhou Yan suppressed his curiosity, did not ask, because he knew, if the other party could speak, he would know. If not, asking would be futile.

"Zhou Lingzhe, I know you are very perplexed, but you have three chances to come to Tianji Mountain, and your doubts will soon be cleared," the white-clothed winged woman said, her voice carrying a hint of respect.

As she spoke, Zhou Yan unintentionally moved closer slightly, and in that moment, he felt a mysterious thrill in his soul.

Just like his feeling towards Zhuge Chunqiu, it seemed that in that moment, the soul of the white-clothed winged woman exuded a natural sense of fear.

And that fear, paradoxically, was directed towards Zhou Yan.

Zhou Yan’s heart shivered, and without showing any emotion, he slightly shifted the distance again as if nothing had happened, with no change in his demeanor.

But this scene had deeply shocked Zhou Yan. The fragment of soul energy he had separated entered into the Purple Flame Void and swiftly took away and suppressed that flicker of emotion.

But outwardly and inwardly, he behaved as if nothing had happened, still steady and calm.

"Thank you, Fairy, for resolving my confusion. It was actually I who deliberately came here, and it has nothing to do with Mr. Spring and Autumn Annals. I hope he will not be punished because of this."

Zhou Yan thought for a moment and then continued speaking.

He didn’t use Spiritual Sense to communicate because that would display soul fluctuations and allow the woman in white to detect something unusual.

"Zhou Lingzhe, you need not worry about this matter. It is the arrangement of the Sect Master and has nothing to do with Zhuge Chunqiu. On the contrary, he has earned merits and there will be rewards from the Sect. As for me, Zhou Lingzhe, you need not thank me. Instead, I should thank you for your help.

What exactly this is about, I can’t say now, but you really don’t have to be formal with ’Zhuge Jiayue,’ you can just call me ’Jiayue.’"

The winged woman, Zhuge Jiayue, had actually spoken such words.

As she spoke, her expression was very serious, as if dealing with the most important thing in life, without any hint of insincerity or formalities.

Zhou Yan’s mind couldn’t help but ponder. His gaze shifted back and forth on Zhuge Jiayue’s figure, appearing rather unbridled and quite disrespectful, but Zhuge Jiayue showed no impatience, as if this were to be expected.

Recalling the fleeting sense of soul fear that Zhuge Jiayue had earlier, Zhou Yan gradually calmed down and calmly said, "Jiayue, does your Sect Master know that I was bound to come here?"

Zhuge Jiayue gently nodded and said, "Yes. Zhou Lingzhe, the Sect Master is already here. You can ascend to the top of Tianji Mountain. There, Jiayue is not qualified to go."

Zhuge Jiayue spoke respectfully.

This time, her respectful demeanor was clearly displayed.

After speaking, she bowed gracefully.

Zhou Yan transformed into a streak of Sword Light, directly crossing the distance, resisting the fierce opposition and appearing at the summit of Tianji Mountain.

In the chaotic environment, the summit was the first to be affected by the harsh natural conditions, but often, the summit had a different environment.

At this moment, the top of Tianji Mountain was exactly like that.

People who had never reached this summit would never know that it was actually very serene and warm, flowers in full bloom, all seasons like spring.

Upon arriving here, all discomfort suddenly vanished. The place was warm like spring, the airflow no longer violent, the sense of gravity very balanced, no longer making one feel nauseated or as if one were going deaf.

This place, like the most beautiful place in the world, was just like the valley in the ancient lands of the Zhou Family, the environment so perfect it was unimaginable.

"Have you ever thought that in such a chaotic place, there could be such a beautiful environment?"

A very young yet ancient voice came through.

Zhou Yan was startled; though he did not see the person, he felt a familiar aura.

"Seeing you, I now realize, after all I have done, I am still such a failure."

Zhou Yan watched the Void, but suddenly sighed, speaking with immense bitterness.

This familiar aura, it could deceive everyone in this world, but it could never deceive Zhou Yan.

For Zhou Yan’s soul, compared to everyone in this world, was most extraordinary.

"Zhou Yan, I did not deceive you. I am not Uncle Gu Yan."

This voice sighed as it spoke.

He gently walked out from the Void.

He wore a snow-white robe, his whole being very old, yet also very young.

This was contradictory.

Yet it was not contradictory.

Because being young and old were both a kind of Tao that circulated back and forth, endlessly within him.

A thought of blooming flowers, a thought of falling flowers.

On his body, the passage of time was like a terrible inversion and collapse had occurred.

He was both young and old because his appearance, like the nature of Heaven and Earth, was constantly changing dramatically.

Who said a person could not show changes in time like gravity or airflow?

Who said a person could not simultaneously be a child, a youth, and an elderly?

All of this was realized in him.

"You certainly aren’t Uncle Gu Yan; he is just a Void Body of you."

Zhou Yan bitterly smiled. Because he found that apart from a bitter smile, he could find no other expression to show.

He didn’t know whether to be indifferent, cold, or to smile.

But he smiled, even though it was a somewhat numb smile.

"No, Gu Yan is also not a Void Body, he’s a normal person. When he was saved by your father, he was critically injured and on the brink of death; this was also his Life Tribulation. Every one of us in the direct lineage of the Heavenly Mechanism, we all bear Life Tribulations and may face the calamities of Heaven and Man."

This young old man appeared with his own shape, and when all was truly revealed, he remained both young and old.

In his eyes, worlds were collapsing, not to be seen with mortal sight.

Because to see such would cause one’s Cultivation to dissipate and also lead to death.

This was like the Sword Spirit Dao of destruction and creation in Zhou Yan’s eyes, extremely terrifying.