### Chapter 21: Don’t Ascend! Sending the Ancestor on His Way!
Yuan Ruoyu’s eyes flashed with surprise, and she was somewhat moved.
With this jade talisman, she could ascend!
This was a colossal temptation—a dream for any cultivator to reach the Celestial Realm and become an immortal!
What was the point of all that qi-refining and cultivation if not for the ultimate pursuit of endless freedom and longevity?
Now, an opportunity was right before her eyes.
Even though Yuan Ruoyu was somewhat prepared, she could hardly imagine that the masked man would show up and bring her such news.
But as she stared at the jade talisman in her hand, her heart began to settle down.
A strange mix of fear and anger suddenly welled up inside her!
What did the Celestial Court take mortal cultivators for?
To even consider ascension as a form of trade—where was the heavenly principle in that!
In that moment, she somewhat understood why Lin Feng had refused to ascend when the gates to the Celestial Realm opened last time.
“He must have discovered something…,” she thought, before looking back at the masked figure nearby and asking, “Ascend? What are the conditions?”
The masked man fell silent for a moment, his ethereal voice emanating from beneath the mask: “Help the Celestial Court find everything about the Eternal Emperor, and bring him to us!”
Yuan Ruoyu scoffed. “And what if I say no?”
“If you defy the order, you’ll be captured and brought to account immediately, no exceptions!”
Yuan Ruoyu was furious. “What a joke! I’m not a criminal—why would I be captured?”
“Is there a habit in the Celestial Realm of falsely accusing people?”
The masked man remained silent, only letting out a heavy sigh.
A cold glint flashed in Yuan Ruoyu’s eyes, and the next moment, she crushed the jade talisman in her hand, turning it to dust that slipped through her fingers.
“Bring it on! If you want to capture me, let’s see if you have what it takes.”
With her words, a fierce aura shot up to the sky.
A clear radiance erupted behind Yuan Ruoyu, revealing the apparition of a lotus flower, accompanied by the grand sound of nature.
Her aura peaked to astounding levels, shaking the very heavens.
In the Void above, the masked man’s robes fluttered, revealing a similar clear radiance rising behind him, with flowers blooming amidst the glow.
The two engaged in a duel of laws, appearing to draw from the same source.
A storm brewed in the secret realm, winding and swirling as terrifying energies clashed.
Crack—
Boom boom boom—
Their colliding energies shook the space, twisting and turning, as though thunder itself echoed repeatedly.
Yuan Ruoyu focused her gaze, standing amid the storm on her lotus flower, like a tiny boat adrift in an ocean.
The masked man met her gaze.
In the next moment, they moved simultaneously, both transformed into beams of light, colliding at a horrifying speed.
Boom!
Bang bang bang!
At the center of their clash, deafening sounds rang out as brilliant lights exploded, shattering the space around them.
A fearsome storm erupted and swept out in all directions!
Everywhere it passed, everything was turned to dust, while a mountain in the distance was cleanly sliced away.
Petals rained down from the sky, falling to the ground as the earth quaked and the mountains shuddered, like a green tapestry hanging in the sky.
Such a level of combat could wipe out even a cultivator at the Integration stage with just a mere touch.
After about a quarter of an hour, the sounds of battle subsided, and the turbulent space began to stabilize once more.
Yuan Ruoyu, standing on her lotus flower, quietly observed the masked man not far away.
Her gaze revealed a complex expression.
Not long after, she adjusted her robes, her expression solemn as she deep-bowed to the distant masked figure.
“May I respectfully send you on your way, Ancestor!”
Moments later, beneath the bizarre flames surrounding the masked man, he was completely reduced to ashes.
Not even a wisp of his spirit was left behind.
In the secret realm, tranquility returned. It felt eerily empty, save for the distance where the mountains had been cleaved, confirming the reality of what had just transpired.
Yet even now, she didn’t know which ancestor of the Jade Pool Sacred Land that masked figure was!
But the news he had brought today had left her shaken, unable to let it go.
“Don’t ascend!”
“Don’t ascend!”
Yuan Ruoyu murmured softly before abruptly looking up at the sky, her gaze seemingly piercing through the heavens.
It was as if she wanted to explore if there really were immortals up there in the nine heavens.
If there were, then why was there such a dire situation today?
If not, then where had all the ascended emperors gone?
Yuan Ruoyu couldn’t figure it out, but she sensed she was already caught in a massive storm.
Getting out of it was no longer an option.
Or rather, it wasn’t just her and Lin Feng— all mortals were already caught in the storm.
Only Lin Feng had sensed it first.
Yuan Ruoyu recalled what Lin Feng had said when he left her.
“This is something I must do!”
“I’m already being watched, and there’s no turning back!”
Now, she understood why Lin Feng had said such things.
Even as an emperor, he likely faced many helpless situations.
From the information she had, the other party could control ascension and even command the ancestors of the Jade Pool Sacred Land, meaning they surely held hidden power over mortals.
The strength of the opponent was unfathomable.
After things settled down…
Yuan Ruoyu began to worry about Lin Feng’s safety and sighed softly, “Where are you now?”
“Why haven’t you come to see me? You know that whatever happens, I will face it with you!”
In the tranquil secret realm, her tiny voice resonated with eerie clarity.
Yuan Ruoyu took one last look at the devastated realm that had suffered from the battle, then turned to leave!
The purpose of her retreat was already achieved; there was no need for her to stay any longer.
The speed at which the opponent acted had exceeded her expectations.
That meant not only were they in a hurry, but so were those who were racing against time.
