Ascending to Hongchuan Realm
Above Tianwu Mountain in Xuantian City of Yuanshu Realm, after the protective formation of Mengtian Sect was activated, Lin Shi underwent the baptism of nine heavenly lightning tribulations during the Refinement stage, witnessed by many cultivators. She also withstood multiple heavenly lightning tribulations during her ascension to the upper realm and ascended to Hongchuan Realm without any surprises.
As soon as Lin Shi ascended to the Hongchuan Realm, she felt dense spiritual energy points rushing into her body. Upon exiting the ascension passage, she used a cleansing spell to clean her body and face, and changed into a clean, light purple fairy dress. Once outside the ascension passage, she stood neatly dressed in the open space before it.
Lin Shi had only glanced around halfway when she saw islands floating in the air everywhere, with relatively fewer land and forests. Before she could take a closer look at her surroundings, her gaze settled on a tree in front of her.
Lin Shi's gaze met that of a young male cultivator. The young male cultivator stood atop a tree branch in front of her, silently staring back at her.
Lin Shi stood in the open space, staring silently at the male cultivator on the tree branch for a long time. The other man's white robes fluttered in the breeze, making a soft rustling sound. His hair was all tied up in a blue jade crown. His face was handsome, his features perfectly sculpted, with sharp angles. He had beautiful, star-like peach blossom eyes, but his gaze was cold and indifferent, only his pupils occasionally shifting slightly. He looked like a perfect puppet!
The two were of similar cultivation levels and stared at each other expressionlessly, but neither showed any inclination to launch an attack.
After a long while, Lin Shi finally spoke. She asked, "I am Lin Shi. Fellow Daoist, may I ask how you are addressed?"
The handsome male cultivator standing on the tree branch, seeing Lin Shi introduce himself first, then spoke up: "I am Lian Zheng, an elder of the Dream Heaven Immortal Sect." His voice was between clear and deep, but his tone was very distinctive.
Upon hearing this, Lin Shi raised an eyebrow and said, "What a coincidence!"
Lian Zheng raised an eyebrow and asked, "Why do you say it's such a coincidence?"
Lin Shi smiled slightly. She said, "I've heard of your sect's name, and I just think it sounds nice."
Lian Zheng paused slightly, then quickly replied, "That is indeed a coincidence!"
Lin Shi smiled and stared at Lian Zheng for a while. After pondering for a long time, she finally spoke, "Thank you for helping to clear the obstacles at the exit of the ascension passage! See you again if fate allows!" As soon as she finished speaking, she disappeared from the scene without waiting for a reply.
Lian Zheng paused for a moment, staring at the direction where the other party's aura disappeared for a short while, before slowly landing on the open ground.
...
Lin Shi chose a deserted, lifeless island in the sky to land on. The island was surrounded by clouds and mist, and filled with spiritual energy. If one did not use their divine sense, they could only see clearly within five meters with their naked eyes, but beyond that, all they could see was a vast expanse of white.
On a deserted floating island, Lin Shi found a thick tree that would require at least four adults to stretch their arms and hug it. She leaned lazily against its branches and softly called out to Wen Zhao'an in the Little Spirit Realm: "Senior Wen, I have ascended to the Hongchuan Realm. Are you still there?"
Wen Zhao'an immediately replied from the small spiritual realm: "I'm still here."
Lin Shi breathed a sigh of relief and said, "That's good. I've fulfilled all my promises to you, and our karma is now settled. If you need to be reborn, I can perform a rebirth ritual to help you on your journey."
"Wait a minute, I'd like to have a few words with you first." As soon as Wen Zhao'an finished speaking, his semi-transparent soul flew out of the small spiritual realm. He stood before Lin Shi in spirit form. Taking advantage of his height, he looked down at the beautiful female cultivator before him. His voice was deep, his gaze complex.
Lin Shi didn't change her posture leaning against the tree trunk. She simply tilted her head slightly and looked back at Wen Zhao'an indifferently, asking casually without any curiosity, "What are you talking about?"
Wen Zhaoan pondered for a moment before looking into Lin Shi's eyes and asking bluntly, "Did you just fall in love at first sight with that male cultivator named Lian Zheng?"
Lin Shi raised an eyebrow: "What makes you say that?"
Wen Zhao'an smiled slightly: "You were staring at that male cultivator named Lian Zheng so intently that your eyes were practically glued to him, and your heart was pounding like crazy. You've never acted like that towards any other male or female cultivator before. Even the demon cultivators and half-demons from the Lie Tian Small World, completely naked in front of you, didn't react unusually."
Lin Shi rolled her eyes slightly and said helplessly, "I'm narcissistic, I just like faces that look like me."
Wen Zhao'an's gaze seemed to be looking at someone else through Lin Shi. He said, "You are indeed very different from Fei Ni!"
Lin Shi looked at Wen Zhao'an, trying her best to suppress the urge to roll her eyes and her impatience, and said, "Li Feini and I are not the same person. You didn't fall from the Nascent Soul stage; you failed your tribulation in the Mahayana stage, right? Is it because you can't overcome the emotional hurdle, or do you have other obsessions in your heart? Do you want to be reborn? You only have a remnant soul now; you can be reborn with your memories, or you can find rare flowers, herbs, or spiritual minerals to create a new body and start cultivating again. You were originally at the peak of the Mahayana stage; you can quickly return to your original cultivation level."
Wen Zhaoan looked genuinely surprised. He couldn't help but ask, "How did you know? Where did I give myself away?"
Lin Shi blinked, a slight smile in her eyes. She said earnestly, "I guessed. I guessed it very accurately, right? I had a pretty good idea from the beginning."
Upon hearing this, Wen Zhaoan laughed heartily for a while before finally exclaiming, "You are indeed clever! No wonder you were able to advance your cultivation from an ordinary mortal woman, accurately avoiding various potential dangers, growing rapidly, until you reached the Void Refinement stage and ascended to the Hongchuan Realm."
Lin Shi smiled slightly and said, "Thank you for the compliment!"
Wen Zhao'an stared at Lin Shi for a long time. His gaze, which had been complex and unspeakable, gradually returned to clarity. Finally, he said to Lin Shi with a sense of relief, "Fei Ni was my obsession. I just wanted to accompany her reincarnation for one more time. Seeing you like this now, my obsession should have dissipated. Perhaps we will meet again someday!"
After Wen Zhaoan finished speaking, he waved his hand casually, and then his semi-transparent, remaining soul body immediately disappeared from Lin Shi's sight.
Lin Shi didn't bother to check which direction he went. After watching Wen Zhao'an disappear, she sat cross-legged under a tree, raised a spiritual energy shield in front of her, and used concealment and breath-concealing techniques. She carefully examined her small spiritual realm, storage bracelet, storage ring, and storage bag three times with her divine sense to ensure there were no remaining problems. She also examined her mountain of magical artifacts, array stones, spirit stones, spirit ores, and spirit plants three times over.
After that, Lin Shi concealed his figure and aura, and wandered around Hongchuan Realm to find out the basic situation.
Although Hongchuan Realm is a vast world, it still has many mortals and low-level cultivators. There are numerous cities, sects, and cultivation families, and a large number of cultivators. Those who ascend from the lower realms to Hongchuan Realm have all reached the Refinement stage. Even cultivators nearing the end of their lifespan rarely dare to ambush and kill cultivators from the lower realms. Cultivators from the greater worlds, in order to befriend those who ascend from the lower realms, sometimes even ambush the ascension passages, then try to recruit and persuade them into their sects or cultivation families to increase their own strength.
"I didn't expect to lose an opportunity to be recruited into a major sect!" Lin Shi muttered to herself, but after she finished speaking, she chuckled softly. In the end, she chose an uninhabited island in the sky to cultivate in seclusion for a period of time to stabilize her cultivation at the Void Refinement stage.
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