Transmigrated back into the body of her child self, can the mighty Celestial Bing Meilu survive in a Xianxia world all the while staving off the advances of arrogant young masters and wannabe protagonists alike?
Why is life so hard for the Icy Beauty?
Any corrections or criticisms are welcome, I hope you enjoy Chapter 56: The Grand Elder
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Li Ji, Xi Fu and the other faction members in the lobby of the hotel looked at Bing Meilu as if she were utterly insane. She calmly sipped her tea, ignoring the disturbed glances of her faction members and the other guests of the hotel.
Bing Meilu's mind was made up. Either Sima Yazhu would want the child, in which case her being taken by the Redscale clan was unacceptable, or Tang Wuhan would, in which case, the same. Regardless, there was no conceivable way the Hong Long Clan could raise the child of a member of the Moon Crying Swan Palace as well as Bing Meilu's faction could. She was, after all, a former Celestial with means beyond anything in the mortal world.
A frown appeared on Grand Elder Houyi's face. In all his centuries in Transcending Impurity, he'd never had a Second-Realm ant speak so disrespectfully to his face. However, she was a member of the Sky Swallowing Gulper Armada, and he couldn't be sure that she didn't have a strong backing, or he would have imminently shown his displeasure.
"So what if I am?" Grand Elder Houyi coldly said, his eyes narrowed. "This is a matter pertaining to the bloodline of the Redscale clan. Naturally, I have to take action."
"Sima Yazha is a member of the Twelve-Headed Bird Sect and my junior sister from the Moon Crying Swan Palace. After her suffering at the hands of your clan member, it's imperative I bring her back to the sect immediately."
"Hphm. I would have preferred for my grandchild to know their mother, but if having the girl is so important to you, I can send her to you after she gives birth, or let your group stay until she gives birth."
It was, at least in the eyes of cultivation culture, an extremely reasonable request. Clans were very possessive of their bloodlines. If a Fifth Realm Grand Elder wanted to ensure the safety of his talented son's child, even if it meant restraining a foundation establishment junior in his city for three months, who would care?
Sadly for him, Bing Meilu did not respect 'Transcending Impurity' Level experts. She had already decided to view Sima Yazhu's daughter as being part of the Moon Crying Swan palace. Let alone a second-rate power like the Redscale clan, even the Twelve-Headed Bird Sect was not as qualified as Bing Meilu when it came to training members of her old sect.
"We should take this deal-" Li Ji whispered in her ear, but she shushed him, before turning back to Houyi with a frosty glare.
"You really want to force my Junior Sister to remain in the city she was abused? How cruel and heartless. Is this the attitude shown by the Redscale clan towards the Twelve-Headed Bird Sect? Completely audacious!"
Elder Houyi's eyebrow twitched. This was a relatively small matter between one Grand Elder and his bloodline- Did she have to make it seem like he was leading the Redscale clan in a rebellion?
"She's pregnant with the heir to my estate- I think it's completely reasonable that I ensure my Grandchild is born in Redscale City!" Elder Houyi growled, an invisible pressure descending upon her hotel. Not the full force of his cultivation base, just enough to remind her she was speaking to a superior.
"When the heir of your estate is old enough, she can naturally come back and claim whatever inheritance she is due. Until then, she will be raised in her mother's power, the Twelve-Headed Bird Sect. Or does the Redscale clan think it's entitled to tell the Twelve-Headed Bird Sect where its own children should be raised?"
The Grand Elder grit his teeth. Of course, comparing being a member of a sect to possessing a clan's bloodline was ludicrous, but Bing Meilu was technically correct that Houyi's grandchild had one parent from the Redscale and one parent from the Swan Palace. He couldn't say that he did indeed think that being a member of the Redscale clan gave him a stronger claim to the child compared to the Twelve-Headed Bird Sect parentage in his eyes, or it really would look like he was disparaging the area's hegemon.
"Redscale city is the only power capable of properly raising a possessor of the drake blood of the Hong Long clan. Would you really make a clan member grow up without the training necessary to control their bloodline?! I think I would have full rights to ensure the safe raising of my grandchild in that case."
"Jiang Hu, come out!"
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The sabre cultivator walked out from a room in the hotel, to where Bing Meilu was speaking to the Grand Elder. He removed his hood, revealing his long draconic horns.
Houyi's eyes widened as he sensed the powerful draconic aura slumbering within Jiang Hu.
'This bloodline- How incredibly pure! Not even the main branch has such a pure Red Drake bloodline! Who the hell is he?' The Fifth Realm expert thought in shock.
He quickly calmed down. The matter of his own grandchild took precedence. He would have to report the strange man to the clan leader at another date.
"As you can see, my Twelve-Headed Bird Sect is more than capable of raising unique bloodlines. Your objection is invalid."
"Enough. I've already gone out of my way to show you an incredible amount of face, given the difference in our cultivation. If you're so insistent on poaching a member of my bloodline- Don't blame me for being ruthless."
This was a red line for Grand Elder Houyi. His faction had already lost a Nascent Soul prospect in the form of Elder Fang's death. Of all Houyi's sons, Fang was the most talented. There was a good chance Elder Fang's child could become a powerful member of Houyi's faction in the future. There was no way he would let an outside group raise his grandchild.
The Grand Elder raised his hand, the incredible power of a Transcending Impurity level expert roaring forward. Sima Yazhu directly appeared in his hand, looking frightened out of her mind. As far as Houyi was concerned, this was the end of the matter. No one would be willing to offend a fifth-realm expert or a power like the Redscale clan over such a minor issue.
Below, Bing Meilu narrowed her eyes frostily. She had given him a way out, but he was desperate to force her hand. Who had given him permission to raise the child of one of her subordinates without asking her? Furthermore, it would be an unacceptable insult to her old sect to allow such flagrant disrespect. In her past life, Bing Meilu had fought Truth-Dao Realm enemies in the name of her Moon Crying Swan Palace, let alone a mere fifth-realm gnat.
She pulled out her disciple token. Pouring her Qi into it, she sent an emergency report.
'Fifth Realm Redscale clan member has kidnapped a member of the Moon Crying Swan Palace in collusion with his son, a known demonic cultivator. Requesting immediate support.'
Like any major power, the Sky Swallowing Gulper Armada's disciple token could be used for numerous functions, including sending emergency messages, which would alert nearby sect members and the higher-ups. Of course, Sects did not overly baby their members, only through trials of fire could a power grow the strength of its disciples. Higher-ups would only intervene in serious cases, or if the life of someone important was at risk.
Elder Houyi had been in seclusion for several centuries and was not all that aware of what was happening on the Continent. He had only come out when he was informed his son was executed for demonic cultivation. If he had asked someone more informed for advice, they would have told him the current number one danger in the continent: Messing with the survivors of the Moon Crying Swan Palace.
After all, the Twelve-Headed Bird Sect were the masters of the Bird Talon Continent. To have one of their direct branches exterminated suddenly and with no warning was an incredible loss of reputation. It was practically a slap in the face, proof they were actually fallible. Thus, a huge amount of resources had been mobilized to look into the matter of the Moon Crying Swan Palace's destruction and to find all survivors who had escaped its fate.
Several second and third-rate powers had been directly exterminated for taking advantage of low-ranking survivors, such as trying to force them to reveal secret techniques and the like. If Elder Houyi had been aware of all this, he might have been less forceful in his methods.
Moments later, dozens of huge black voids opened up in the sky. Enormous warships slowly emerged, alongside hundreds of huge white feathered birds. These were Sky Swallowing Gulpers, their very presence seeming to warp the air into them a vortex. A huge banner hung from each ship and Gulper.
'Ox Fleet - Cloudly Skies Sector - Justice Upholding Strike Force'
"Who dares cause trouble in our Prefecture?" A fierce voice could be heard from countless miles.
The aura of a Saint-Realm cultivator engulfed the city, seeming at one with nature and filled with boundless power. Saints could merge their qi with the innate rhythm of the world, allowing them to wield nature around them as their own power. When within the range of a Saint, lower-realm cultivators became helpless.
Grand Elder Houyi stared up at the fleet, a look of shock and confusion on his face. For such a small matter - A whole Strike Force of the Sky Swallowing Gulper Armada had appeared? That was a Saint-level Strike Force Commander, five or six Transcending Impurity Realm Division Commanders, dozens of Nascent Soul Commodores and more. It was a huge force- There was no way it was here because of him?
Below, Bing Meilu gave Houyi a smug smirk. This was the meaning of 'suppressing others with one's background'. Bing Meilu had never been afraid to use the backing of higher realm cultivators to kill her enemies. What else was the point of joining a large sect? In her eyes, it was a simple deal. they would help her when she was weak, in return for her support when she became stronger.
Completely unable to resist, Grand Elder Houyi watched as the girl his son had impregnated was pulled from his hand by a gentle gust of wind onto one of the ships, alongside Bing Meilu and her followers. Moments later, dozens of black spiked chains wrapped around him and all he saw was darkness.
Upon the back of an enormous Sky Swallowing Gulper, with a wingspan almost as broad as a lake, Bing Meilu and her faction stood. A tall, fierce-looking man with a halberd strapped to one man stared down at her. This was a Strike Force Commander, the same rank as the man who had brought her to Port Snake in the first place.
"Report, Bing Meilu of Snake Fleet," he ordered the girl.
She noted that he made no effort to use a Truth determining method on her. Perhaps he thought that she wouldn't dare lie to him, or didn't care about the truth of the matter.
"Yes, sir. I was in the Ashen Mountains for a training trip when I stumbled upon a man named Elder Fang, who was a secret Demonic Cultivator. With the aid of another Redscale elder, we apprehend him and rescued four members of the Moon Crying Swan Palace who he had been torturing for his cultivation. Soon after, Elder Fang's father Grand Elder Houyi came and attempted to forcefully kidnap one of the victims for some nefarious purpose, no doubt. I ask Senior to uphold justice in this matter!"
The Saint waved his hand, and huge black chains surged through the air, bringing the limp form of Houyi towards him.
"Soul Search."
Even unconscious, Elder Houyi let loose a shrill scream of pain. His form crumbled to ash. A burning red Soul was ripped from his body by golden wind. His spirit twisted and turned, causing cracks like that of shattered glass to spread through the air. The very spatial laws of the continent shuddered as Houyi's soul struggled in its bonds. A moment later, the burning soul shattered into dust.
The Saint chuckled uproariously.
"Good, you have some balls for a woman. Even I wouldn't have dared speak to a Fifth Realm cultivator like that when I was in the second." he turned to give Bing Meilu a look of appreciation. "Our Armada has never lacked strength, but we've always been in need of more bold cultivators. Why don't you become my disciple and join the Ox Fleet?"