Chapter 203: CH. 203 | Restoration After War
Lin Tian looked ahead, his cultivator’s eyes flaring bright as he took in An Yue’s cultivation base. She’d clearly reached Perfect Core Formation, just one step away from Nascent Soul.
He genuinely hadn’t expected it, this woman who’d once been stuck and struggling at Qi Condensation was now practically standing at the doorstep of Nascent Soul.
It wasn’t just An Yue either. Disciples like Ya Fei, Yun Yun, Luo Mei, and Ji Xue had all reached Core Formation as well, though their bases sat one stage below hers.
"Ten years, and you’ve already reached Perfect Core Formation. That’s not bad at all, if you ask me," Lin Tian said, offering genuine praise.
An Yue felt a flush of emotion. Even though she knew Lin Tian’s clone had been stationed at the main hall this whole time, she was far happier having his true self here, praising her in person. It gave her heart a real lift.
"Thank you, Master Lin."
[DING! You have a pending system notification]
[Would you like to open it now?]
[Yes/No]
A system panel appeared in front of Lin Tian, showing a notification that had been delayed since he’d been in a different dimension, separate from his disciples.
He grew curious. Even though he could see how much they’d grown on the surface, he wanted to know exactly where their emotional development stood after ten years apart.
From outside the Lingxian Sect, Wu Yue and the others arrived. Zhu Wei, Leader of the Zhu Clan, came along with them.
Learning that Lin Tian had returned from the Saintess Spring Valley left him anxious about the fate of his two children.
"Even though the Yuanmo Sect Leader has been killed, we still—"
"Where are my son and daughter, Master Lin?" Zhu Wei cut in, interrupting Wu Yue, drawing everyone’s attention at once.
All eyes turned toward Lin Tian. A faint smile crossed his face. With a brief sweep of his hand, he directed his white qi orb toward another spot.
A dimensional portal formed in the front courtyard, startling the other disciples enough that they immediately stepped back.
"Zhu Xian is on the other side of that portal. But as for Zhu Zirong..."
"What? What happened to my son? Is he alright?" Zhu Wei asked, his face filling with panic.
"We managed to escape the Valley Dimension together. But once he realized the war was raging outside, Zhu Zirong wouldn’t listen to me and chose to go looking for you instead," Lin Tian answered.
"Right now, I have no idea where he is."
While Zhu Wei was still talking with Lin Tian, a woman’s voice called out from beyond the dimensional portal. The voice sounded achingly familiar to Zhu Wei, one he’d longed to hear for a very long time.
"Did something happen out there?" Zhu Xian’s voice asked.
"Bring everyone through the portal, Zhu Xian."
"Everything’s safe now!"
Hearing Lin Tian’s voice clearly was enough to get Zhu Xian and Si Lingxi moving, stepping through the portal, followed by the rest of the villagers.
Zhu Xian stepped out, her feet landing on the courtyard floor of the Lingxian Sect, her expression confused, her heart pounding.
As her eyes swept across her surroundings, her gaze landed squarely on Zhu Wei and the other elders of the Zhu Clan.
"FATHER!"
"Xian’er?"
Zhu Wei rushed forward and pulled Zhu Xian into an embrace the moment she reached him.
Si Lingxi stepped out of the portal as well and spotted her sect’s elders standing right there. Their faces lit up with pure joy at being reunited with their sect leader again.
A wave of emotion swept across the entire front courtyard of the Lingxian Sect, a father reunited with his daughter after so long apart, sect elders reunited with their leader once more.
It wasn’t just them either. Other cultivators and mortals had made it out safely too. They stepped through the portal one after another, reuniting with friends from their own sects.
None of them had expected the portal to lead them directly to the Lingxian Sect.
An Yue glanced at Lin Tian, her look full of meaning. She was genuinely in awe of how much Lin Tian had grown and accomplished during his ten years away.
He’d already reached Soul Formation, meaning his path toward immortality had truly begun. He’d also grown skilled with dimensional and portal techniques, even wielding a black orb capable of pulling things into nothingness.
An Yue didn’t fully grasp the concept of dao, but she was certain that dimensional power reflected Lin Tian’s own unique dao concept.
That naturally left her curious, eager to hear every story from his time away.
But given the current situation, she worried it would be harder than ever to find a quiet moment to talk with him.
Zhu Wei immediately ordered the clan elders to go track down Zhu Zirong’s whereabouts, and Zhu Xian volunteered to join the search for her brother as well.
The middle aged man walked over to Lin Tian, clasped his hands together, and dropped to his knees in a show of respect, "Thank you for your kindness and everything you’ve done, Master Lin."
"From now on, the Zhu Clan will maintain close, lasting ties with the Lingxian Sect," Zhu Wei said.
Other sects followed suit, especially the elders from the sect led by Si Lingxi. Lin Tian welcomed their intentions and hopes warmly.
"Our focus right now is restoring the Qin Kingdom and helping the mortals rebuild their cities and their way of life," Lin Tian declared firmly.
He raised his hands, clasped them together, and returned their gesture of respect. "The Lingxian Sect will do everything in its power to help restore all of it."
Lin Tian handed that responsibility over to Wu Yue and An Xiao, since they had far more experience navigating politics and bureaucracy than he did, ten years of practice having made them far more capable in that arena.
Wu Yue and An Xiao nodded, accepting Lin Tian’s orders without hesitation. Cao Ying walked over to Lin Tian, expressing just how impressed she was with everything he’d accomplished.
"There’s still 80 years left in your service to me. Does that sit alright with you?" Lin Tian asked.
"Not at all a problem. I’m already fully bound to this sect, emotionally speaking. Even if you lifted that restraining seal, I wouldn’t have anywhere else to go," Cao Ying answered.
"Did you reach that dao concept entirely through your own understanding? Because I can feel your dao will is even stronger than mine," Cao Ying added.
"A lot happened. Part of why I stayed in that valley so long was because I needed to understand a heavenly enlightenment," Lin Tian answered.
"Glad to hear it. Even though your cultivation base is only Early Soul Formation, I’ll admit your dao concept puts your actual strength well above mine," Cao Ying replied.
"If you ever have the time, I’d love some guidance to deepen my own understanding of dao concepts."
Lin Tian nodded, telling her he could arrange that sometime down the road. For now though, his focus stayed on rebuilding the region and restoring the sect.
It might take a long while, but he had no problem with that at all.
"I’m going to enter closed door cultivation for a while. It shouldn’t take too long. While I’m away, you’re in charge of the sect, Cao Ying."
"Understood. I’ll do everything I can!"