“Oh, where?”
Yu Ci looked up.
The deafening roar continued, but the blue sky held nothing but a few white clouds—nothing out of the ordinary.
“It’s still too early to see. Right now, the Mountain-moving Cloud Boat is docking with the port’s mooring array. It’ll take at least a quarter of an hour. We shouldn’t get too close yet—let’s head back slowly.”
Yu Ci nodded, watching as the middle-aged man expertly sprinkled medicinal powder over the Hook-nosed Ape’s corpse and its surroundings to mask the scent of blood. This precaution was necessary to prevent nearby beasts, demonic creatures, or even fiends from tracking them and threatening the Mountain-moving Cloud Boat’s docking port dozens of miles away.
Once everything was settled, Yu Ci picked up the Hook-nosed Ape’s body himself and walked back with the man.
As they moved, he glanced up again. The few white clouds in the sky had already dispersed under the thunderous vibrations, leaving the heavens flawlessly clear. Yet he knew that, far beyond the reach of his vision, a colossal entity hovered in the sky, emitting powerful shockwaves to connect with the prearranged talisman formations on the ground.
It had been two months since Yu Ci arrived at the Mountain-moving Cloud Boat’s port, and he was gradually becoming familiar with its operations.
The so-called “port” was surrounded by mountains, with no rivers or seas in sight—hardly deserving of the name. Yet it was indeed the place where the Mountain-moving Cloud Boat picked up and dropped off passengers and goods. When Yu Ci first arrived, he had been puzzled until Zhao Xiqiao—the middle-aged man beside him—explained it to him.
“The port matches the vessel.”
The Mountain-moving Cloud Boat was indisputably the largest means of transportation in the cultivation world, built by the Great Passage, one of the most powerful merchant organizations in existence. Larger than a mountain, it floated tens of thousands of feet in the sky, capable of carrying up to ten thousand people as it traversed the realms from east to west, north to south.
Due to its sheer size and design, the Mountain-moving Cloud Boat resembled an unsinkable floating city, drifting only at high altitudes and unable to land freely. Thus, the task of transporting people and goods was handled by the “Ferry Cloud Shuttles” attached to the ark.
The “port” where Yu Ci stood was essentially a facility for guiding and receiving these shuttles.
The two carried the Hook-nosed Ape’s corpse through the mountain forest. Though the port was just over the ridge, they descended instead, stopping halfway down the mountain at a boulder nearly ten feet tall. Yu Ci activated a hidden mechanism, causing the rock to slide aside and reveal a passage wide enough for two. They stepped inside, and the entrance sealed shut behind them, dimming the light—though glowing pearls along the walls provided enough illumination.
The thunderous noise from outside was muffled, leaving only faint tremors.
As they walked down the corridor, Zhao Xiqiao sighed.
“Who knows when the chaos in Sky Rift Valley will finally settle? Living in this sunless place day after day—even if we don’t get eaten by fiends, we’ll suffocate from boredom!”
His voice echoed dully in the passage.
Yu Ci gave a noncommittal hum but said nothing.
The space they occupied had been hollowed out inside the mountain—spacious enough, but inconvenient.
Originally, the port’s staff hadn’t lived here. Instead, they had built residences on the mountainside, living in relative comfort. But after the upheaval in Sky Rift Valley, with beasts and fiends running rampant, they had been forced to relocate. Complaints were only natural.
Before long, the corridor widened slightly, and a pale blue-green light flickered ahead, starkly different from the lanterns’ glow.
Zhao Xiqiao called out from a distance, “Brother Zhou—”
His voice echoed through the cavern. The blue-green light flashed once more before vanishing.
Once past this barrier, they climbed a few steps and passed through a door into a vast stone chamber. Furnished like a hall, complete with tables and chairs, it was surprisingly well-decorated. The lighting here was much brighter than in the corridor.
At the head of the room sat a man sipping tea, his bald head gleaming under the pearl light like a polished dome.
Both Yu Ci and Zhao Xiqiao paused before bowing in greeting. “Elder Zhu.”
The man ignored them, continuing to drink his tea, leaving them standing awkwardly.
Zhao Xiqiao blinked at Yu Ci, then hunched over with an ingratiating smile. “Elder Zhu, this humble one will go deal with the hunt—er, I mean, prepare to receive the shuttle!”
His hasty correction came too late.
With a bang, the bald Elder Zhu slammed his still-steaming teacup at Zhao Xiqiao’s feet, shattering it and sending shards flying.
“Little Zhao! If I catch you dragging Yu Ci out hunting again, I’ll break your legs!”
Zhao Xiqiao jumped back but quickly recovered, grinning. “Yes, yes! If you ever see me hunting with Brother Yu again, you can break one of my legs—no need for both, I’ll take care of the other myself!”
Still bowing, he retreated swiftly, shooting Yu Ci a look that said, ‘You’re on your own.’
Yu Ci chuckled and tossed the Hook-nosed Ape’s corpse to him.
Once Zhao Xiqiao was gone, Elder Zhu turned his glare on Yu Ci. Bald, beardless, and thick with muscle, his face was the picture of ferocity. His eyes narrowed as he sneered.
“Are all the disciples of the Rifting Earth Sect this reckless?”
Before Yu Ci could respond, the elder snapped, “Your sect leader asked me to treat you, not to watch you throw your life away! Your soul was severely wounded—it’s only just healed! This is when you’re most vulnerable to corruption! Instead of resting, you spend your days swinging that sword, killing, accumulating innate Qi… Tch! If you were some demonic cultivator, fine! But you practice orthodox Daoist methods! Are you trying to breed inner demons, huh?”
His rising tone and vicious expression made “menacing” seem an understatement.
Yet Yu Ci remained unfazed, merely nodding with a faint smile.
Seeing his attitude, Elder Zhu wanted to rage further—but recalling how all his past scoldings had ended, he deflated. With a disgusted click of his tongue, he waved Yu Ci away.
Yu Ci bowed respectfully, neither submissive nor defiant. “Thank you for your concern, Elder Zhu.” Then he turned and headed deeper into the mountain.
As Yu Ci’s figure disappeared, Elder Zhu’s furious expression slowly smoothed into contemplation. He absentmindedly scratched his smooth chin, his confusion growing like a thickening fog.
“Just how is this kid doing it?”
*****
Having dealt with Elder Zhu, Yu Ci navigated the tunnels and chambers of the mountain with ease. The hollowed-out interior was divided into five sections across two levels.
The upper level was the heart of the port, split into two areas. The first was the mooring array’s core, where intricate talismans and formations connected with the Mountain-moving Cloud Boat. This was the most critical part of the port, guarded year-round by cultivators from the Great Passage, who also handled minor issues with the array. The second area was the living quarters for the port’s staff. Since most of them usually resided in the mountainside houses, this space was rather cramped.
Yu Ci passed through the residential area and entered the mooring array’s core.
Zhao Xiqiao was already there waiting. Having endured similar lectures over the past two months, he didn’t bother bringing it up again. Instead, he grinned.
“Brother Yu, come! Let me show you the marvel of the Ferry Cloud Shuttle! You’ve been here two months, and this is your first time seeing it. The next chance won’t be for another three months!”
He pushed open a side chamber’s door, and the two stepped inside—only to nearly collide with a man.
Zhao Xiqiao groaned. “Brother Zhou! You’ve doomed me! Weren’t you supposed to be on duty in the hall today? Why was Elder Zhu there instead?”
“Don’t blame me!” The man—Zhou Hu—was a towering figure with a thick beard and a rough but good-natured face. A cultivator assigned by the Great Passage, he wasn’t in charge of the mooring array but served as Elder Zhu’s guard.
“Elder Zhu finished his seclusion and noticed Yu Ci was missing. It didn’t take a genius to guess where you’d gone. If he wanted to ambush you, what could I do?”
Including Yu Ci, the port had only five permanent staff. Elder Zhu, Zhou Hu, and Yan Hao (currently operating the mooring array) were all from the Great Passage, making them the hosts. Zhao Xiqiao wasn’t part of the Great Passage but belonged to the Three Halls Pavilion, another major merchant organization. He ran a shop here, trading exotic goods via the Mountain-moving Cloud Boat’s travels.
Zhao Xiqiao wasn’t truly upset—he was shrewd enough to know Zhou Hu’s temperament and had only complained in jest. Changing the subject, he asked about the shuttle.
“How many are disembarking this time?”
“Thirty-four. The worse Sky Rift Valley gets, the busier we become. Business must be booming, Shopkeeper Zhao!”
Zhao Xiqiao shook his head. “Too many people are hunting fiends and beasts lately. Prices for those materials are dropping, while formerly worthless herbs are skyrocketing… It’ll be decades before things stabilize.”
The valley’s recent upheaval—a surge of frigid energy—had devastated entire ecosystems. While beasts could flee, many once-common medicinal plants had been wiped out, becoming rare commodities.
As a merchant, Zhao Xiqiao cared about such things.
Yu Ci, however, was more interested in the room’s setup. He had been here before, but things looked different now that a shuttle was arriving.
At Zhao Xiqiao’s prompting, Zhou Hu pulled aside a curtain on one wall, revealing a large circular mirror nearly four feet in diameter—the biggest Yu Ci had ever seen.
Images flickered across its surface, showing the other side of the mountain: a secluded valley ringed by peaks.
The first time Yu Ci had seen this, he had been stunned by how similar it was to his own Divine Illumination Bronze Mirror. Later, he learned this was a well-known technique called “Circular Light Art,” which projected distant scenes using prearranged formations. Here, it displayed the mooring array and the descending shuttle.
Years of receiving and emitting shockwaves had left the valley barren. Now, a whirlwind kicked up, scattering dust and sand from the valley floor.
“Here it comes!” Zhao Xiqiao grinned.
Yu Ci’s eyes widened as Zhou Hu adjusted the mirror’s view upward.
A crimson cloud slowly descended from the sky.