100 Together in Search of the Heavenly Realm

Qin Yue was driven to desperation, nearly struck several times by the sweeping waves of energy. He knew that Luo Yu, once he caught an opportunity, would never let him off easily. After warning him a few times and seeing Luo Yu remain obstinate, Qin Yue calculated inwardly: each butterfly was only a thousandth of the power of a magical artifact. Even if one were damaged, Luo Yu wouldn’t be seriously harmed. It would be better to show him some force as a deterrent.

With his mind made up, Qin Yue's subordinates stopped holding back. He summoned the Scarlet Abyss and swung it toward one of the butterflies.

Seeing Qin Yue getting serious, Luo Yu’s spirit soared. He vigorously commanded the butterflies to dodge and launch sneak attacks. If Qin Yue slipped up and let even one butterfly get close, Luo Yu would be finished.

They clashed for a while until one butterfly was clearly doomed to be damaged. Luo Yu’s heart tightened with fear, bracing himself for the pain. Unexpectedly, when the Scarlet Abyss struck that butterfly, it suddenly shattered and transformed into a cluster of smaller butterflies, completely unharmed!

Both men were stunned by this. Then Luo Yu burst into wild laughter: “Hahaha! Beautiful lady, just surrender to me! I possess vast powers; you’re no match for me!”

Qin Yue said nothing but looked at Luo Yu with a faint smile. Suddenly, he moved swiftly, taking advantage of Luo Yu’s arrogance to relentlessly slash at the butterflies.

Luo Yu smugly said, “Don’t struggle anymore! No matter how much you cut, they can’t be broken—in fact, they’re multiplying... Wait! Stop!”

A slight smile curled at Qin Yue’s lips as his hands did not cease. He mocked, “Three days without beating, the roof caves in. You’ve healed your wounds but forgotten the pain—how could you not be properly punished?”

Luo Yu was deeply conflicted. With each cut from Qin Yue, the number of butterflies grew even larger. His spiritual consciousness soon couldn’t control them properly. Most started flying erratically, as if drunk.

Soon, the swarm of butterflies revealed their true forms, falling to the ground and flapping helplessly. They looked pitiful beyond words.

Luo Yu wore a mournful expression, his hopes dashed once again—a bitter feeling indeed.

Qin Yue waved his hand with flair. The Scarlet Abyss emitted a clear ring before obediently retreating into the bracelet. The red eyes slowly faded, returning to normal.

Luo Yu complained with dissatisfaction, “You won by unfair means! Using tricks!”

Qin Yue sneered, “Your spiritual consciousness is inadequate; how can you blame me?”

Luo Yu was speechless, sighing inwardly: Why was there a brilliant one born alongside the talented? With illusions, why must there be eyes to dispel them?

He scowled, “What’s the name of those eyes of yours? Tell me so I can remember!”

Qin Yue thought for a moment and said, “Let’s call them ‘Illusion’s Demise.’”

Luo Yu said, “That name sounds too aggressive! Not subtle enough... In Naruto, Itachi’s illusion technique is called ‘Tsukuyomi’—how about ‘Moon Script’? Reading books, plus it has ‘moon’ in the name!”

Qin Yue was indifferent. “Fine, then call it Moon Script. And what about your treasure? What’s its name?”

Luo Yu said, “The Great Emperor of the Sky dwells on Yinzhou Mountain, right? There’s a saying, ‘Moths at night, butterflies by day.’ Let’s call it ‘Day Butterfly’ to commemorate that!”

Qin Yue nodded. “There’s still one more eye. Once you refine it, then let’s leave seclusion. We’ve already been in the back hall for over half a month; surely people have started to worry.”

Luo Yu blinked. “One day in the mountains feels like a thousand years in the world. But just refining a magical treasure made time fly so fast.”

Qin Yue pondered. “We also have the Spirit Infusion Array. For others, ten years might only amount to one meditation session.”

The two reflected for a while before Luo Yu took advantage of the night to refine another eye. The next morning, the two finally opened the hall door to exit seclusion.

After lazily resting at home for a few days, Luo Yu still kept the search for immortal herbs on his mind. After preparing thoroughly, he reported the plan to investigate the Heavenly Court to his superiors.

The old master was very interested in the Heavenly Court. “There’s no yin energy there. Grandpa wants to go see it.”

Qin Yue said, “The Heavenly Court is located high in the thin air. Going together... might not be possible. But inside the Heavenly Court’s barrier should be suitable for travel.”

Luo Yu said, “I’ll set up a teleportation array to bring everyone along if we can get in!”

Father Chu looked somewhat uneasy. “The Heavenly Court is a restricted area. There might be traps. Even imperial tombs have such defenses. Don’t be careless.”

Lan Peisi quickly assured, “My dear, I will protect you!”

Luo Li grabbed Luo Yu’s hand, shaking it vigorously. “I want to explore too! Don’t always leave me behind! Children need to experience hardships. Overprotection doesn’t help me grow; don’t you get that?”

Luo Yu looked at Qin Yue uncertainly. “The outer area is probably just arrays... maybe we can bring her?”

Qin Yue hesitated and said nothing.

Father Chu said, “Let Lan Peisi go along then.”

Qin Yue shook his head. “Outside the arrays, the temperature is low and closer to the sun. His constitution isn’t suitable; accidents may happen.”

They had consulted with Qiong Qi and the Northern Yin Emperor about the Heavenly Court’s location. It was roughly above northern China, between the troposphere and ozone layer. Foundation Establishment cultivators couldn’t endure it; they couldn’t stay long. Even Golden Core cultivators had to consume spiritual energy to survive prolonged stays there. Under such harsh conditions, challenging the Heavenly Court’s grand array was nearly impossible for ordinary Golden Core cultivators. Nascent Soul cultivators could fight longer but few mastered array techniques; brute force attempts to break the array all failed.

In the end, only three set out: Luo Yu, Qin Yue, and Luo Li. After another half month of preparation, the three bid farewell to their families and set out with ample supplies and tools to challenge the Heavenly Court.

Riding clouds northward, upon reaching the general area Qiong Qi indicated, they ascended through layers of cumulus and cirrus clouds, entering a cloudless zone, then climbed higher. The temperature plummeted to several tens of degrees below zero. This was no concern for them, but the air currents were so strong they couldn’t hear each other’s voices, communicating only through spiritual awareness. Luo Yu and Qin Yue managed, but Luo Li, who had secretly formed a core, was smaller and less powerful than her brothers. She struggled through the turbulence riding Kunlun Lan, finally arriving comfortably at twenty thousand meters altitude thanks to her brothers’ protection.

From here, looking down, they could see the curvature of half the Earth, radiating a dreamy blue-white glow. The land resembled a vast oil painting, some areas vivid with reds and oranges; endless fields like green jade embroidered a golden and jade garment upon the earth; unknown regions far away were lined with white snow lines like scattered silk ribbons, forming beautiful poetic curves. Lakes and seas appeared as frozen blue gems, without a ripple.

Beneath their feet was the human world, but no signs of life. All creatures hid deep within this vast scenery, so tiny as to be entirely overlooked. Looking up was the boundless sky and the profound, infinite universe.

Luo Li quietly gazed for a long time before pouting. “Living here, wouldn’t you feel lonely? I really don’t understand what the Heavenly Court’s people think.”

Qin Yue said calmly, “Cultivators live long lives, out of sync with the times. Getting close to people often makes one feel abandoned by time, with much resentment. Living here, out of sight, out of mind, free of desires and conflicts, the mind finds peace. Here one can see the sun, moon, stars, the Milky Way, and the universe. Compared to this cosmos, cultivators are so small. The unknowable expanse constantly reminds cultivators to self-reflect and strive to comprehend the heavenly Dao, hoping one day to become immortal like the stars.”

Luo Yu nodded. “That is indeed lofty ambition. But they overlook the wisdom of ordinary people. The discoveries of a small few can never match the experience summarized by the majority. But it’s unavoidable; ancient technology was primitive, and humanity went through ignorant periods. They scorned the wisdom and research of ordinary people, never imagining that thousands of years later, ordinary people would surpass them in many areas. If they had cooperated, shared knowledge with ordinary people, perhaps aided by them, they wouldn’t have met their downfall. Both sides working together and complementing each other benefits all.”

Qin Yue said, “If they could see today’s world, maybe they’d think that way. But time waits for no one; when humanity could have helped, they were no longer here.”

Luo Li blinked. “Do you intend to help humanity? Teach them to lucid dream and use spiritual awareness?”

Qin Yue and Luo Yu were silent. In an era where guns were still regulated, teaching people to use spiritual awareness might lead to countless mysterious deaths. Not to mention if everyone was allowed to carry guns—would you dare go out? The general public’s quality is unreliable.

Luo Yu hesitated. “Perhaps we can provide some safer information, like the existence of spiritual energy and magical power.”

Qin Yue said coolly, “Current technology can’t detect these substances, nor can it perceive souls or arrays properly, so it can’t be used effectively.”

Luo Yu pointed at Qin Yue. “You’re making the same mistake as the ancient cultivators! Giving them a research direction and target is what makes them move forward! To harvest, one must sow first! Modern technology advances rapidly; maybe in a few or decades, they’ll achieve results.”

Qin Yue said, “Isn’t humanity already studying souls?”

Luo Yu said, “Yes, but many are misguided, linking souls to religion or faith. The research outcomes are mixed and not taken seriously domestically. If someone spoke out with evidence, it might draw attention.”

The three chatted as they neared the Heavenly Court, stopping only then. Luo Yu and Qin Yue activated their Moon Script eyes, while Luo Li used her cat eyes, which could see through minor illusions, to search for the array’s fluctuations.

Suddenly, Luo Li excitedly shouted, “Wow! Aurora! Look, auroras!”

Following her pointing finger, they saw in the distant northern sky vast, colorful auroras hanging like ribbons across the sky, dreamlike and surreal. Luo Yu instinctively pulled out his phone and snapped photos in a frenzy.

Enjoying the scenery, the three took turns piloting Kunlun Lan, patrolling the boundless sky for three or four days until they finally detected the fluctuations of a gigantic illusion array.

Luo Yu took out a globe to compare their position with the land below, surprised to find the Heavenly Court was vertically above the ground, less than a hundred kilometers from the capital city by rough estimate.

Luo Yu was amazed. “When the Heavenly Court was built, the capital city wasn’t here yet, right? How come it’s so close? Is the Feng Shui here especially good?”

Qin Yue thought a moment. “Among the earliest human activity sites, there are several here. It’s possible primitive humans settled here because of the Heavenly Court. As for the later capital, that’s likely coincidence; history has had many capitals.”

Luo Yu clicked his tongue appreciatively. “Good thing this location is somewhat remote and almost no passenger planes fly this high; otherwise, there’d be accidents. In a few decades, who knows if there’ll be air disasters? Radar would be useless nearby.”

Qin Yue smiled. “If you can break the array, we’ll set up a waypoint to divert planes around.”

The tale of cultivation and friendship continues.