Heaven, Earth, Me
Chapter 1256. Confronting Tai Qingzhe.

Tai Qingzhe honestly didn’t understand what was wrong with her. From the first moment she crossed paths with the one called Yasenia Dravory, her entire body felt uncomfortable, as if that woman was responsible for a great calamity. Inside, she understood that such thoughts were irrational. But what if it was some sort of instinct telling her to be careful? 

So, to make sure that these feelings were not just her imagination, she decided to ask her people to investigate immortals with the name Yasenia Dravory. 

“What did you say? You found nothing?”

If one said that there were few immortals, it wouldn’t be wrong, and if one said that there were many, it also wouldn’t be wrong. It all depended on context. Still, the number of Sixth Realm people in this area of the world was in the thousands. If one took those hiding rogue cultivators, evil sects, and hidden ones into account, the numbers would become even higher. So, while it wasn’t easy to inquire about special details of immortals, it wasn’t that difficult to at least know some superficial facts about each of them. 

Now, her people went to inquire, and it seemed that Yasenia appeared from nowhere in particular. It's possible that she gave a false name, but an immortal with her beauty and being a dragon, finding out her true identity wouldn’t pose a significant problem as long as she had made any other appearances in the world. 

Tai Qingzhe frowned. “How is it possible to find nothing about her? What about female cultivators with similar names? What about those who go around hiding their appearance? There must be something, even if it is a faraway rumor. Yet you are telling me that you don’t even have a lead on where she appeared for the first time?”

The informant was helpless as Tai Qingzhe questioned him. “Venerable one, this one would have the guts to poke a Dragon but not to offend you. You can try finding others in my profession. However, the result will be the same. This Dragon Woman named Yasenia Dravory didn’t exist before she appeared here.” 

Coupled with her previous bad feelings, this made Tai Qingzhe even warier of Yasenia. ‘Are her intentions to harm our sect? She might be a spy from one of our enemy sects… Why would I otherwise feel adverse towards someone without any rhyme or reason?’ 

She was a Sixth Realm cultivator, and while there were those who were arrogant and acted somewhat impulsively, most of them were old beings who could think calmly and profoundly. Tai Qingzhe, before this situation, had always kept things for herself while contributing to those around her, while not letting those who tried to take advantage of her have a good time. 

To summarize, she was a composed and intelligent cultivator. 

After her brain went back and forth many times, she stilled. To her shock, she found that her mind had tunnel-visioned entirely on Yasenia since their first meeting. These last months had been her going from one place to another, trying to find anything about Yasenia that would justify her ill feelings. “What is happening to me…?” 

Rubbing her forehead, she decided to just face this person face-to-face and solve all her doubts. “I can’t live like this. Otherwise, my firm heart might start to waver.” 

She stepped outside and whistled, summoning her golden sparrow. Then, she scanned the sect and quickly pinpointed where Yasenia and Star Forge were going. In just a few moments, she intercepted them.

“Yasenia Dravory, stop!”

When Tai Qingzhe arrived, she saw Yasenia raising an eyebrow at Star Forge while the other woman put on an ugly expression. She heard Star Forge speak. “Let’s hear her out first.” 

“Up to you.” Yasenia shrugged and looked back at her with a faint smile. The smile was clearly harmless, but a stuffy annoyance grew in Tai Qingzhe’s heart. She took a deep breath and spoke with an expression that held back a mix of confusion and resentment. It was truly a complex look. 

“Who are you, Yasenia Dravory? There are no records about you. It is as if you suddenly popped out of nowhere. The day we met for the first time, I had bad feelings about you, and it seems that I was correct! Are you a spy who has come to harm us? Are you trying to use your appearance to attract people to become your allies? What is your objective!?” 

The more she spoke, the more agitated she became, and even her energy started leaking out. Her strength was at the Transcendence Realm’s second level. She had also understood an intent domain and developed it for a while. Her strength was nothing to scoff at. 

Meanwhile, Yasenia and Star Forge stilled for a few seconds. Star Forge furrowed her brows and looked at Yasenia. “To be honest, her words are not nonsense. I can’t really feel anything wrong, but Qingzhe has been our Sect Elder for a while. Yasenia, don’t blame me for siding with her since she has brought up a fair accusation and worry.” 

If Yasenia had any background, those words would be nothing but rambles and fallacies. But, due to the special situation, they became quite reasonable.

Yasenia looked at them and sighed. “This is why I didn’t want to show myself…” After pondering for a while, Yasenia’s voice began flowing with a calm cadence. “Let’s start with my origins, then. I can’t tell you exactly where I come from. However, I can tell you that I have no interest in doing any evil. This, I swear.”

Star Forge was used to Yasenia’s teasing self, so this seriousness took her by surprise. “As to why people had been unable to gather information about me, that’s also easy to answer. I’ve been traveling while hiding. It would’ve been even more strange if you found any information about me at all.” 

The blonde woman sneered. “Are you telling me that you’ve managed to spend the entirety of your mortal years in anonymity?”

The dragoness raised her eyebrow. “I am saying that I am a beast and that you wouldn’t have known about me at all if I hadn’t decided to come out and get to know other cultivators.”

Star Forge remembered how Yasenia was hiding inside Luan Feixue. ‘If I hadn’t been paying extra attention during Xuefei’s match, even I would’ve had trouble picking up on Yasenia’s existence. I guess it makes sense. Plus, she has already made it quite clear that she has no evil designs for the sect. While we can’t really call her an ally, we can at least trust her as an informal guest.’

Thinking till this point, Star Forge looked at Tai Qingzhe and spoke. “Satisfied? I am being impartial here, and her answers, while they have some holes, are also quite rational. I hope you are not expecting Yasenia to just give us all the details about her life because you are suspicious. Even then, we are currently going to see Sect Master. If there is anything wrong with her, we will know by then. Do you have any objections?” 

“I…” Tai Qingzhe understood Star Forge’s viewpoint, and if it were a normal situation, she might’ve agreed as well. But now, with Yasenia in front of her, her mood became increasingly awful. “Star Forge Lady, I am not resigned. I still think that there is something wrong with her. We shouldn’t trust her; she is an outsider!” 

“Sigh…” Star Forge had a complicated expression. She didn’t expect this person to act this way. “Go back. We’ll talk about it later. Now, you are getting emotional.”

“But—”

“Enough.” Star Forge’s tone became firm and curt. “First, listen to what I am saying. Even if Yasenia did her utmost best, she would never be able to injure me or the Sect Master. You should be able to feel that she is just in the first level and has yet to control an Intent Domain.”

“Huh?” Yasenia blinked a few times. “How can you tell? I might be hiding my strength, no?”

Tai Qingzhe answered with a snort. “Your energy control in your immediate surroundings is basically nonexistent. Someone who has controlled an Intent Domain would have a passive area of control around them.” After tapping the sparrow with her foot, the bird screeched and turned around, carrying Tai Qingzhe away. 

Once she was gone, Star Forge deadpanned at Yasenia. “You were lucky that she was not as insistent the first time you both met. Otherwise, she would have noticed your otherworldly nature and caused big trouble for you and Xuefei.”

The dragoness chuckled. “You might be right, but aren’t I alright now? Let’s go quickly. I'd rather not leave a person as important as a Sect Master waiting.” 

“Sure.”

On the highest peak of the outer mountain range, far above the clouds, Yasenia spotted a large palace with white gold edges and a light brown exterior. It looked unique, like a mix of something ancient but with a touch of freshness that made it stand out. The complex architecture and other wonders, like the detailed wall carvings, helped a lot in giving it that atmosphere of prosperity, luxury, and power. 

“Fancy place.” 

Star Forge almost choked at that light comment. “Who speaks like that? Shouldn’t you be praising it with a few more verbal plays?”

Yasenia rolled her eyes and spoke with an exaggerated tone. “Oh, such a marvel in construction. The immortal wood it used must’ve come from the most ancient tree. One can feel its immortal aura even from a distance. The ethereal, white gold, looking like pieces of the most refined starlight, blinds the eyes of those that—”

“Okay, enough, enough.” Star Forge sighed, rubbing her forehead. “I don’t understand you, really. Can you control yourself in the presence of the Sect Master later?” 

Yasenia smirked lightly. “It will depend on how that lord treats me. I am not one to cause trouble. However, I have difficulties swallowing humiliation.”

Star Forge sighed again. “That’s good enough, I guess.”

Both of them arrived in front of the main palace doors. Once there, without anyone saying anything, the large double gate opened by itself. When one entered through those doors, a world of lavishness welcomed them. Yasenia was somewhat surprised and confused. Still, inside this palace, even the walls had ears. Hence, she refrained from making any comment and followed in silence until they arrived at the building’s main hall. 

Inside this hall, Yasenia saw a group of people with varying appearances. Some were old-looking, others extremely youthful. Some wore extravagant clothing, others simple robes. The group of 11 people in this room made Yasenia’s eyes squint with wariness for a second. 

‘All of them are at the fourth level… It seems that I’ve entered a den of dragons and tigers.’