### Chapter 20: Celestial Messenger, Ascension Talisman!
“Yuan Ruoyu, ascend at once!”
Hua Hongyi softly chanted, her eyes sparkling with surprise, quickly shifting to a profound envy.
What does this Celestial Court decree even mean? Yuan Ruoyu got a special pass to ascend to the Celestial Realm instantly?
How is that even a thing?
She was a huge fan of ascension, always dreaming of soaring into the Celestial Realm and becoming a carefree, immortal fairy!
After a moment of contemplation, Hua Hongyi shook off her daze and said, “But isn’t Yuan Ruoyu’s current cultivation only at the late stage of the Great Ascension Period? Wouldn’t just jumping straight to ascension be a bit silly?”
“If she ascends that way, can she leap over the Tribulation Period to become a true immortal?”
Hua Hongyi wasn’t a dimwit and soon realized something felt off.
That decree was in Jiang Youlong’s hands, and it was the real deal from the Celestial Court!
How could this happen?
She found herself at a loss…
Jiang Youlong stashed away the scroll and, after a quick thought, chuckled, “No need to be surprised! The Celestial Court is merely made up of those immortal emperors who have ascended!”
He continued, “Sure, there’s a difference between mortals and immortals, and the Celestial Court generally doesn’t meddle in mortal affairs, but the Jade Pool Sacred Land is an ancient power; it has plenty of ancestors who have ascended!”
He rambled on, presenting his assumption: “Letting Yuan Ruoyu ascend right now is clearly a protective measure. Of course, if she’s ungrateful and chooses to court d*ath, well, that’s another story.”
Hua Hongyi’s eyes lit up at his words, and she smiled, “That makes perfect sense coming from you!”
Zuo Qingtian, who had been silent, suddenly chimed in, “So does this mean the Celestial Court is ready to take action?”
As soon as he said that, the atmosphere became tense.
If the Celestial Court was taking action, it meant they were interfering with the mortal realm.
Yet, none of them felt anything was amiss.
They were working for who, again? Oh right, the Celestial Court!
But since Jiang Youlong’s instructions didn’t require them to act, it implied that the Celestial Court would send someone else in.
They didn’t need to worry about it for now.
Jiang Youlong nodded, grinning, “Just as we expected, we finally get to enjoy a little peace and quiet for a while.”
“Let’s go enjoy some tunes at a brothel!”
“Hehe…”
“I’m really not in the mood for that now; I just hope our Hua Family ancestor puts in a little more effort for a Celestial Court permit for me!”
Hua Hongyi said enviously, “To ascend at the Great Ascension Period, now that’s a backdoor that’s wide open!”
A massive airship floated across the skies, gliding smoothly.
Below, the breathtaking landscapes flew backward in a blur, and soon a grand city appeared on the horizon.
Jiang Youlong laughed heartily, “Let’s go check it out!”
“Have to say, ever since the diary of the Eternal Emperor came to light, the atmosphere in our cultivation world has dramatically shifted!”
“Nobody even goes into closed-door training anymore…”
Hua Hongyi replied with a chuckle, “Exactly! Before, one person would uphold an entire sect, and now one person ignites a brothel!”
“Can’t deny it, the Eternal Emperor is quite the character!”
As she said that, Hua Hongyi seemed to think of something, chuckled lightly, and added, “I heard a rather amusing joke a few days ago.”
It was about a brothel.
A disciple from a cultivation family almost had a brawl with an old man over a courtesan.
Later, they found out the flood had washed away the Dragon King Temple!
That old man was actually the young man’s family ancestor!
“Hahaha!”
“No way! Hold on, when did you sneak off to a brothel, Flower Demon?”
Jiang Youlong and Zuo Qingtian exchanged knowing smiles.
After all this running around, they hadn’t felt this relaxed in ages.
Hua Hongyi shot them a sideways glance and continued, “According to that young man…”
“Their family ancestor often goes into closed-door training, so the younger generation hasn’t even seen him.”
“And he never dreamt that his first meeting with his family elder would almost turn into a fistfight at a brothel!”
“Good thing he introduced himself at a critical moment; otherwise, he might’ve gotten slapped to d*ath!”
This time, after hearing her, Jiang Youlong and Zuo Qingtian fell into silence.
They exchanged glances, both seemingly guessing each other’s thoughts.
“What’s wrong? Not laughing?”
Hua Hongyi frowned, sensing their reactions, and voiced her confusion.
“Cough—”
Jiang Youlong chuckled bitterly, smiled gently, “To be honest, some of the ancestors in our family tend to engage in long-term closed-door training too. There are some I haven’t even met!”
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“Could you imagine running into them unexpectedly? You really wouldn’t recognize them!”
Hua Hongyi paused, realizing she hadn’t considered this aspect, then burst into laughter, “What? Are you all afraid of running into your ancestors at a brothel? Don’t worry! We’re in Azure Prefecture, we won’t bump into them!”
Jiang Youlong shook his head lightly; his concern was definitely not about that.
Then he added, “If I end up old and constantly in closed-door training, that would be unbearable!”
Zuo Qingtian chimed in, “Closed-door training is mostly for breaking through the next realm; otherwise, as life spans diminish, there’s going to be a day of downfall.”
If you’re not immortal, your lifespan will eventually run out!
A cultivator in the God Transformation Period only lives about ten thousand years.
A Great Ascension cultivator? Seven or eight thousand years, tops.
For an Emperor, if they don’t ascend, their lifespan certainly won’t exceed a hundred thousand years!
This is why the gates of the Celestial Realm open every few thousand years.
Allowing those cultivators who reach the Tribulation Period to ascend to the Celestial Realm and become carefree immortal beings.
According to ancient texts, cultivators had to reach the late stage of the Tribulation Period to ascend.
But over time, it seems the conditions to ascend have been relaxed considerably.
Last time the Celestial gates opened, even early-stage Emperors could ascend!
Some speculate it’s because the spirit energy of the world today isn’t as rich as in ancient times.
It’s just too rare to find cultivators who reach the late stage of the Tribulation Period.
Thus, the Celestial Court allows this sort of early ascension!
Such heavenly grace!
At this moment, Hua Hongyi added, “So, I just hope the powers above can see our hard work and open a backdoor for us!”
Jiang Youlong nodded, “Don’t worry, they definitely will! Just do well with the tasks assigned to us!”
“Otherwise, who would want to keep running errands?”
“Haha, that makes sense!”
————
A few days passed in the blink of an eye.
During this time, a major event stirred up quite a commotion in Azure Prefecture.
That was the Xuanqing Sect forming an alliance with the Jade Pool Sacred Land, the Taichu Sacred Land, and several ancient cultivation clans of Liyue Celestial Dynasty!
Although everyone knew that alliances often meant less than they appeared,
It still indicated that, at the very least, the Xuanqing Sect was seen as an entity worth courting by the major forces.
With two Emperors as their backing, who could even begin to describe their bright future?
This alliance constituted a significant event for Azure Prefecture.
Many sects from Azure Prefecture were invited to the Xuanqing Sect as witnesses.
At the same time, it served a purpose of establishing authority!
Yan Changkong wanted to use these events to gradually build the Xuanqing Sect’s prestige!
————
At the Jade Pool Sacred Land!
While in a secret realm, Yuan Ruoyu suddenly felt something and opened her eyes wide.
Then, her eyes narrowed!
Because at this moment, just a few dozen paces away from her in the secret realm stood another person.
That person was floating in the air, their skirt billowing elegantly.
Wearing a blank mask, an aura of terror radiated from their body, exuding an extraordinary demeanor.
Yuan Ruoyu’s heart sank, feeling as if she was facing a great enemy!
She kept her gaze firmly on the stranger, her expression extremely serious.
This was the secret realm of the Jade Pool Sacred Land, an area only accessible to the Sacred Ones.
Now, there was another person here who managed to sneak in without alarming the Sacred Land.
That truly made her heart race with anxiety.
Moreover, the profound and powerful aura emanating from the stranger made her hesitate to let her guard down.
Yuan Ruoyu stood slightly upright, a bright light rose behind her, and a lotus flower emerged in the glow.
Her aura surged dramatically, shaking the ground!
Yuan Ruoyu declared firmly, “I’ve been waiting for you for a long time!”
Yet, what responded to her was an eerie silence.
It felt like an eternity had passed.
From above, beneath the mask, a voice as ethereal as smoke finally drifted down:
“Celestial Court decree, Yuan Ruoyu ascends immediately!”
The masked figure waved their hand, sending a streak of light flying toward Yuan Ruoyu.
She caught it and looked— it was a piece of jade tablet.
The masked person spoke again, “This is the talisman for ascending to the Celestial Realm; with this talisman, you can ascend at once!”
